The Sky Charm
by Leii-Leii
Summary: Tsuna's (arguably) best trait is put to good use with his new job at the cake shop. AU, episodic, crackish, ALL27.
1. Resolve

_uploaded on June 07, 2015_

 _edited: March 2017_

 **Disclaimer:** I own nothing from Katekyo Hitman Reborn.

 **Summary:** Tsuna's (arguably) best trait is put to good use with his new job at the cake shop.

This is my first fic for the KHR fandom. Cover art done by yours truly. Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Resolve**

* * *

Tsuna had the best mom in the world.

He was called _no-good-Tsuna_ for the duration of his school life due to his bad grades and even worse luck. He ignored them all with his mom's encouragement and loving reassurances; _"If you put your heart into it, you'll achieve anything you want, Tsu-kun!"_

But Tsuna was no-good-Tsuna. Despite his hard work and timeless effort, he graduated high school just _barely_.

He wanted to do better. He _knew_ he could do better. He just didn't know _what_ he could do.

So he told his mom he wanted to put off college. He wanted to think over his life choices and the choice of degree was a big one after all. If he wanted to pursue a career it must be something he knew he'd do well in, something he knew he'd be willing to put his heart and soul into. While mulling over things, he'd work to help with the expenses and save up money. _"_ _Don't worry mom, I got a job at the cake shop at the train station."_

His mom beamed at him. She understood.

Tsuna had the best mom in the world.

* * *

Much to Tsuna's surprise, it wasn't hard to get the job in Kawahira's Baked Goodies. He walked in the shop, saw the owner, "Uncle Kawahira" as he introduced himself, and said, "I saw you have an opening for a cashier . . ."

"Are you applying?" the man smiled at him from behind the counter.

"Y-yes, I'm interested."

"I'm Kawahira. Please call me Uncle Kawahira. What's your name?"

"Sawada Tsunayoshi. You can call me Tsuna."

"Well then Tsuna-kun. You're hired!"

It was both a feeling of victory and dread for Tsuna when he found himself paling at Uncle Kawahira's smile. Surely he couldn't be the only one who tried to apply, so why him? Something within himself was firing like crazy, telling him to _get away_ but he wanted to have a job and with his rotten luck he doubted he'd get one again in the near future. So he stayed.

"Thank you very much, Uncle Kawahira."

* * *

Kawahira's Baked Goodies was located inside the Namimori Train Station. It was fairly new, Tsuna thought, since he hadn't seen the cake shop before, which could also explain the opening for a cashier. It was also placed in a convenient spot which could attract a fair number of customers. However, for the past ten minutes he stood there he never saw anyone enter the shop despite the surge of people coming in and out of the trains.

 _It's like it's invisible,_ he mused to himself.

But, hey, if there weren't many customers, then the workload would be lighter, right?

His eyes focused on the piece of paper taped on window of the shop; _Hiring: Cashier_

Wouldn't hurt to give it a try, right?

* * *

"I knew you could do it, Takeshi!" Tsuna grinned at Takeshi who only smiled sheepishly in response. "A scholarship in Kishiki U . . . wow!"

"Haha, you're embarrassing me Tsuna," Takeshi looked away and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Don't be silly, there's nothing to be ashamed of," he welcomed the new plate of sushi Takeshi handed to him. "And besides, everyone in Namimori knows you're one of the best sushi chefs in town!"

As if to emphasize his point, the other customers within earshot expressed their approval of Tsuna's proclamation. He grinned wider at the black-haired boy who only went redder. Takeshi's father, Yamamoto Tsuyoshi, clapped his son on the back with a smile.

"Only second to me, of course!" he guffawed, earning laughter from the customers in Take Sushi restaurant.

Tsuna noticed Takeshi's discomfort despite having a huge smile on his face. _So he really is embarrassed_ , Tsuna thought fondly as he quickly devoured the sushi on his plate. As soon as he finished he thanked them for the food and announced his intent to go home. By habit, Tsuyoshi gave Takeshi a little push and ordered him to accompany Tsuna.

 _Just as planned,_ Tsuna smiled to himself.

Once outside, Takeshi finally let go of the wide, fake grin and settled for a smaller, genuine one. "Thanks."

"No need to thank me, I'm the one who started it after all."

The taller boy threw an arm on his shoulder and pulled him a bit closer. "I promise to visit you everyday, Tsuna." His voice suddenly held an air of seriousness in it. It made Tsuna's heart skip a beat.

"You don't have to do that, Takeshi! Travelling everyday from Kishiki to Namimori and back will be very expensive," he explained before Takeshi set his mind into doing it. "We have each other's numbers, so you can call or mail me instead."

Takeshi stared at him expectantly.

Tsuna sighed. "Everyday, if you have to," he added.

"Thank you Tsuna!" he laughed, the sound of his happiness was enough to put a smile on anybody's face. "I still promise to visit you every week!"

"What?" Tsuna's eyes went wide. "Takeshi!"

"I made up my mind."

Tsuna was too late. Once Takeshi concentrated on something, nothing would ever break his resolve from doing it. But he supposed that was what made him _Takeshi_ , his childhood friend.

They finally reached the Sawada house and Tsuna stepped away from under Takeshi's arm to face him. "I guess this is it."

"Yeah," he nodded, his hands in his pockets. "Classes start in three weeks but I want to get a feel of the place early. I probably won't be able to visit you till classes start though."

"Like I said, you don't have to —

"But I _want_ to, Tsuna," his brown eyes stared at him with such intensity that Tsuna gulped in fluster. After several years of friendship, this side of Takeshi still surprised him sometimes. "I'll leave tomorrow morning."

"I'll see you off?" Tsuna offered.

But Takeshi shook his head. "It'll make it harder for me to leave when you're there, you know. My old man crying was enough to almost stop me. Almost. I don't know what will happen if it's you."

Tsuna didn't have a response to that. To think Takeshi ranked him higher than his own dad, well, he's at a loss of words.

Instead, he stepped forward and gave Takeshi a hug. He felt him stiffen for a second, before Takeshi returned it and placed his head on top of Tsuna's, being a head taller than him.

All Tsuna could think of while watching Takeshi's retreating back was, _I want to be better._

He should stop being _no-good-Tsuna_.

Maybe he should try getting a job.


	2. Influx

_uploaded on June 11, 2015_

Thank you very much to all who reviewed, followed and favorited this story! You guys are awesome! And thanks for the welcome as I venture into the fandom.

To answer Hweianime's question, Chapter 1's events were in reverse. So the last scene with Takeshi was the first one to happen etc.

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Influx**

* * *

The first day on the job wasn't so bad.

Tsuna received the complete list of cakes they have and their prices per slice or per cake. He was also taught how to place cakes in boxes and tie them up nicely with a ribbon. He picked it up quite fast, Uncle Kawahira noted, and aside from knowing how to operate the cash register, that's the extent of Tsuna's job description.

"For now," Uncle Kawahira smiled, confusing Tsuna a little bit.

Uncle Kawahira, a man full of mysteries. He's the shop owner and he's also the only baker. How he managed to run his business alone before was never brought up, so Tsuna could only assume he had a cashier before him. In any case, there's only the two of them now, and he reminded Tsuna that he would be minding the storefront alone while the older man would be stuck in the kitchen. Tsuna expected it so he wasn't surprised.

The training had taken the whole day, and while nearing closing time, Uncle Kawahira asked him, "Tsuna-kun, are you ready?"

Tsuna wanted to be honest. "N-not really," he smiled, fidgeting on the spot, "But I promise to try my best."

"Good," the cake shop owner nodded and turned to go to the kitchen. "Then we can open up tomorrow."

"Eh?" The shop was closed for the entire day?! But losing one day of business just to train him —

"Don't worry about it, Tsuna-kun," Uncle Kawahira said as he entered the kitchen and disappeared out of sight.

Tsuna froze. Uncle Kawahira couldn't read minds, could he?

* * *

Kawahira's Baked Goodies opened at ten in the morning and closed at seven in the evening. It was around noon when Tsuna had his first customer of the day.

His heart almost stopped at the sight of jet-black hair and slanty steel eyes. Who wouldn't recognize Hibari Kyouya, the infamous _vigilante_ of Namimori? This man kept the peace in Namimori — though his definition of "peace" treaded a thin line between right and wrong — and he did it very publicly, leaving unconscious bodies in his wake. Despite his notorious persona, the police never interfered with his patrols so he was free to do as he pleased.

And that included entering cake shops in the middle of the day.

Tsuna fought over his fear and decided to provide good service. "W-welcome!" he greeted him, admonishing himself for stuttering.

Steel-grey eyes focused on him. "Herbivore," the eyes narrowed, "This shop was not here before."

Tsuna gulped. "Um, it's a fairly new cake shop —

"It was _never_ here before," Hibari appeared in front of him, surprising Tsuna. How did he get there so fast?!

Tsuna decided to ignore that and smiled instead. _Good service!_ "Yes, because it's new."

Hibari stared at him in silence. Tsuna continued to smile. But as the seconds passed Tsuna was finding it harder to maintain his smile. His mind started reeling with possible reasons why he would be bitten to death (Hibari's famous _last words_ to his enemies) when Hibari looked at the cake selection they had on display.

"Is there anything you like?" Tsuna suddenly beamed. Maybe he's here for the cake!

"I don't like sweets," he scoffed before leaving the cake shop.

 _Oh well._ Tsuna couldn't imagine Hibari Kyouya eating cakes anyway.

* * *

He never had a customer after that. It was already closing time but Uncle Kawahira wasn't a bit worried.

"You can bring the cakes home if you like," he offered. Tsuna declined but eventually relented on the condition he'd only bring one cake with him. He chose the Heavenly Sky cake, which was a lava cake with blue and orange frosting. Tsuna didn't mind the weird cake names.

With the cake properly boxed, Tsuna went home for the day, a bit excited at the prospect of seeing his mom's happy face. Sawada Nana loved sweets as much as his son did, not that Tsuna would ever admit it out loud.

On the way home his phone vibrated in his pocket. _Must be Takeshi,_ he thought, taking out his phone to look at the message —

And bumped into someone.

"S-sorry!" he bowed his head in apology. This _always_ happened to him! He should really learn how to stop walking when checking his phone.

"Sawada?"

Tsuna's head shot up and saw Sasagawa Ryohei in front of him.

" _N_ _ii-chan!_ " Ryohei was the older brother of Kyoko, and Kyoko was one of his very few friends during middle school. The Sasagawa family moved away after Kyoko graduated from middle school, so it's a big surprise to see him here of all places. Did that mean —

"It's been an extremely long while, Sawada!" Onii-chan exclaimed, and just as energetic as Tsuna remembered him. "I bet you're dying to ask about my little sister!"

"I —

"But I am very sorry to say I'm alone! Kyoko entered Kishiki University, by the way. She's taking up Social Science and she said hi!"

Well, that certainly answered a lot of his questions, Tsuna mused and smiled. Maybe Takeshi and Kyoko would see each other in Kishiki U. "Then what brings you back to Namimori?" he asked instead, pocketing his phone.

"I'm moving back! I'm Namimori Middle's new P.E. teacher."

"P.E. teacher?! I always thought you'd become a professional boxer someday."

The older man howled in laughter. "That's what everybody thought! While I extremely love boxing, Kyoko would have a fit if I go through with it! Injuries are no joke. They can kill you to the extreme." He suddenly sounded grave, a big contrast to his howling laughter a few seconds ago. "Anyway Sawada, I shouldn't be keeping you. Going home?"

"Please, nii-chan, how many times I've told you to call me Tsuna? You're a good friend to me too."

Something must had clicked inside onii-chan's head, because one second he looked all confused and the next he was all smiles. "Then I'll call you Tsuna if you call me Ryohei."

Tsuna grinned. "It's a deal, Ryohei! See you around?"

Ryohei turned and waved while walking away. "You'll certainly see more of me around!"

 _Of course_ , Tsuna thought, they'd have more chances to catch up now.

* * *

The first time he saw her, it was a little weird.

A girl with pineapple hairstyle was looking through the glass panes of the shop, staring at the cakes with strange fascination. She never dared to enter the shop and after ten minutes of gawking, something snapped her out of her daze and her eye caught his and she ran away tomato-faced. Tsuna noted her Kokuyo High uniform and the time; it was a high school student playing hooky.

At least she went away. Tsuna hoped she returned to class. He didn't want to lecture teenagers about good education when he's still a teenager himself.

* * *

Tsuna was on his lunch break when he decided to try the sandwich shop across the train station. That meant crossing the road.

He waited, like the good Namimori citizen he was, for the pedestrian light to turn green. As soon as it did a guy ran to cross the road and Tsuna suddenly felt a feeling of dread, something hot and fiery inside him going on a frenzy. In a second a truck came out of nowhere and it careened towards the guy and Tsuna acted on instinct and bolted after him and caught him and pushed him —

And amidst the onlookers' screams and the sound of the truck toppling on the pavement, they were both safe.

"Are you okay?" Tsuna asked in between pants, looking the guy over.

The guy stared at him in shock and rightfully so. Tsuna gave him a reassuring smile.

"You're okay I guess. A few scratches. Still, we should get you to the hospital," he trailed off when he heard the sirens getting closer.

The sirens seemed to have shaken the shock out of the guy. "What's your name?!" he demanded, clutching Tsuna's arms.

"S-Sawada Tsunayoshi. Call me Tsuna," he answered distractedly while he looked around for a doctor.

"I'm Gokudera Hayato. Please call me Hayato, Tsuna-sama," Tsuna swore he could see the guy crying.

"Let's have the doctor look you over," Tsuna decided to ignore the strange nickname he was given. "Do you feel any pain?"

"Only pains of regret," he muttered, still staring at him with intense, wet eyes. Tsuna didn't know what he meant and was cut off from asking when the medical staff tended to them, separating them.

"I'll find you soon Tsuna-sama!" Hayato shouted from afar while the staff escorted him to an ambulance. Tsuna could only look back, unsure on what to do.

In a few seconds they found he only had a scratch on his elbow. Both him and the doctor didn't feel the need to bring him to the hospital. He was cleared soon after.

Dusting himself off, he glanced at his watch. He still had twenty minutes left for his lunch break, just enough time to eat a sandwich.

* * *

Another strange person decided to loiter outside the shop today, but this time it was a boy wearing a Namimori Middle school uniform. The inside shirt had cow prints on it. That was when Tsuna decided he was weird. He walked around outside, back and forth, back and forth, as if having second thoughts of entering or not. Tsuna waited for a while, trying to see if the boy would reach a decision but twenty minutes was kind of sad. He walked away from the counter and opened the door.

"Hi," he greeted, earning a pair of sleepy wide eyes staring at him in surprise.

Did he shock people that much? That's three people in a row, now.

"H-h-hello," the boy stuttered before muttering, "Gotta stay calm, gotta stay calm . . ."

"Did you want to come in?" Tsuna smiled at him, promptly ignoring the chant.

"Maybe someday," he quickly turned around. "I want to eat cake but I don't have any money. The great Lambo doesn't beg."

 _Lambo._ That's probably his name, wasn't it? Although it's strange for a middle school boy to refer to himself in third-person.

"It's nice to meet you, Tsuna-nii. _Ciao_!" Lambo, as Tsuna now called him in his head, never even bothered to face him again as he ran away in a hurry. How did the boy even know his — the name tag, of course.

Sighing, he closed the door to find Uncle Kawahira at the kitchen doorway.

"I think I'm driving the customers away," Tsuna whined, dragging his feet back to the counter.

"You're doing fine, Tsuna-kun. In fact, a little better than I expected to be honest," the older man was giving him one of those mysterious smiles again, as if he knew something Tsuna didn't and his intuition was acting nutty again.

"I don't understand why nobody's buying anything. The cakes are delicious! My mom loves the Heavenly Sky."

"Oh?" Uncle Kawahira _giggled_ , if that was even possible. "Please tell her I'm very flattered. My humble thanks."

"Maybe you should stop making new cakes. I'm afraid all of it will spoil because of me," Tsuna continued to whine, hitting his head on the counter.

The older man continued to laugh. "Freezing cakes takes care of spoilage, so don't worry yourself over it. And I'm experimenting new flavors of cakes. In fact, would you like to try one?"

Tsuna's face brightened. "I'm always up for that!"

"Great! I call this one Earthly Gravity, a mud cake."

* * *

The second time he saw her, it was weirder than the first.

It was near closing time when it happened and once again, a girl with pineapple hairstyle appeared outside the glass windows, staring at the displayed cakes. This time though, she had company; a guy several years older than her, sporting the same pineapple hairstyle, was staring at _him_ rather than the cakes.

That unnerved him immensely.

He didn't have to ask them to come in like he did with Lambo. The guy strolled in with such grace it left Tsuna awestruck. The girl decided to stay outside though.

"Kufufufu, what a peculiar place," was his greeting, his voice laced with _something_ that Tsuna had a hard time figuring out, but his body told him it's something _bad_.

He forced himself a smile. "G-good evening," he greeted him back, looking at anywhere but him, "Is there any particular cake you like?"

The guy leaned over the counter and Tsuna was forced to look at him, noticing his mismatched eyes. Contacts?

"I am fond of heavenly things," he _purred_ , making Tsuna's skin crawl. This guy was seriously giving him the creeps!

"O-oh! Would you like a slice or a whole cake?" Tsuna decided to try his best to calm down. He's on his way to make his first ever sale and he shouldn't screw this up.

The guy's smirk widened and Tsuna had to manually control his fight-or-flight instincts. "A slice would be nice. It is only for my little sister, after all."

Oh, so they're siblings. That didn't explain the weird pineapple hairstyle though. "One slice of Heavenly Sky, got it." Tsuna quickly busied himself in getting the cake slice out and placed it neatly in a box, all the while ignoring the crazy signals his intuition was sending him. He needed this sale, he admonished himself. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the guy watching him intently and Tsuna knew he never left his eyes on him. Chills ran up his spine.

"Two hundred fifty yen, please," Tsuna gulped, and after the transaction was done, the guy held onto the box gingerly.

"We will see each other again," he turned around to depart — Tsuna visibly shuddering — and looked over his shoulder to add, "Tsunayoshi-kun."

And just as fast as they appeared, they were gone.

If Tsuna never thought about the very real possibility of getting maimed while cashiering a cake shop, he certainly believed it now.

It didn't help that Uncle Kawahira only laughed at him when he told him the tale of his first sale a few minutes ago.

How the hell did that guy know his name in the first place? Only _Tsuna_ was written on the name tag!


	3. Misfits

_uploaded on June 17, 2015_

Thank you to everyone reading this. This little story is a bit crackish so I'm surprised it has people's attention.

I'm aiming to introduce characters as the plot (what plot?) progresses. In the meantime please enjoy!

* * *

 **Misfits**

* * *

A loud, obnoxious guy found Kawahira's Baked Goodies.

It wasn't that particularly bad despite the "VOOIII" and the "trash" and the "scum" thrown around like normal everyday words. No, what made it particularly bad was the company he had with him.

"VOOOIII! My boss craves for cake! Your cake should satisfy him, trash!" a man with long, white hair screamed at him within speaking distance. Tsuna firmly believed this man didn't know the meaning of inside voice.

"Well, take your pick! I'm sure any of our cakes would satisfy your boss's cravings!" Tsuna still tried to be civil. After all, after his first sale with that creepy pineapple guy, for some reason nobody entered the shop for the past three days. So he needed this second sale.

"It _should_ , or I will personally hunt you down myself, scum," he whispered the last sentence — Tsuna didn't think it was possible for this man — when he continued, "VOOOOIII! STUPID BOSS! Get your ass in here!"

Tsuna stared in disbelief. Was that how one talked to their superiors?!

Not a moment later, a rather imposing man entered the shop, his sharp, red eyes gauging the place before landing on _him_. Tsuna gulped.

The man didn't say anything. He snapped his fingers and a throne-like chair was procured out of nowhere — carried by a huge man with spiky hair — and a small, round table — brought by an obviously effeminate man with green hair and red mohawk — settled inside the shop. The imposing man sat himself on the chair and the table was placed conveniently in front of him.

Despite the shop having its own chairs and tables.

It was eerily quiet until Tsuna broke the silence. "S-so, which cake —

"Ushishishi~ the little puppy isn't afraid," a man with blond fringes covering his eyes cackled at him, and in all honesty it was slowly pushing Tsuna to his limit. And he had a wealth of tolerance.

"Bel-senpai, I think he's more of a kitten than a puppy." This time it was from a green-haired teen with a strange hat. "His eyes are changing like a cat."

 _His what?_

"Enough!" the imposing man finally spoke, his voice a little ragged and husky. "You! Trash," he gestured at Tsuna with his hand, earning a stiff smile from the cashier, "Give me your best!"

"And be quick about it!" the long-haired man shouted as he stood behind his boss. "The boss has a meeting in five minutes!"

 _Five minutes?!_ Tsuna's eyes widened as he scrambled to get a slice of Heavenly Sky. He doubted that's enough time to enjoy a cake. If anybody asked him, eating cake slowly, piece by piece while savoring the flavor in his mouth was the best way to go about it. Adding tea would be _heaven_.

But that's Tsuna's opinion. He placed the plate of cake carefully on the man's personal table and quickly backed away before the blond guy got a shot at _stabbing_ his hand with a pen. Just what the hell were these guys anyway? They're all dressed in suits, like professional businessmen, except for the teenager who looked more like an intern. Were they _really_ businessmen, though?

The thought of _"Mafia"_ vanished just as fast when he saw the man take a piece of cake in his mouth.

Judgement day. He gulped a second time.

"This . . . is your best?!" The man suddenly roared, slapping the table hard with his non-fork-holding hand. Tsuna was at a loss of words. Heavenly Sky was the best cake he ever had in his life, in his personal unbiased opinion —

"VOOOIII! Prepare to be hunted down, trash —

But the imposing man raised his non-fork-holding arm in front of the long-haired man.

"YOU!" he called out again to Tsuna, and this time Tsuna smiled a real genuine smile. He knew this man was satisfied for some reason or another. His intuition was beaming with happiness and he couldn't help but let it show in his face.

There was another bout of silence before the imposing man spoke up again. "I expect a weekly order of cake at my estate." He reached inside his coat and tossed him a business card, which Tsuna deftly caught. "The address is there. Put the flavor on rotation." With that, he stood up and left the shop and his lackeys — for the lack of a better term — cleaned up after him. The teenager offered to box the remaining cake himself before stepping out, the effeminate man carried the table out (but not before sending Tsuna a flying kiss) and the huge man carried the chair while glaring at him. Before exiting the blond guy giggled his creepy laugh and muttered something about the prince getting what he wants like little puppies, and the long-haired man stayed behind until there were the two of them alone.

He pulled out a bank note and smacked it down on the counter. Tsuna glanced at it warily, the cash register out of reach since he walked around the counter to give the cake in the first place.

"Keep the change," the loud man's voice was surprisingly low again and it continued to stay that way when he walked over to Tsuna, the space between them uncomfortably small —

"I will still hunt you down, scum," he whispered before leaving, the bells of the door chiming behind him.

Tsuna stared at the door. _But — the boss liked — why hunt — payment?!_ Tsuna's brain was failing him.

Resigned to his fate, he walked back to his cash register to put in the money left by those strange businessmen.

It was a ten thousand Yen note for a two hundred fifty Yen worth of cake.

He took a good look at the business card left by the imposing man. _Varia Venture. Xanxus Vongola, CEO._

Tsuna paled. He really was going to be hunted down for this.


	4. Mark

_uploaded on June 21, 2015_

Your reviews always make me giggle. I'm having fun reading the various theories about the crazy events! Everybody in the story is just plain weird. Poor Tsuna.

Thanks again for reading! Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Mark**

* * *

The day after the Varia Venture business trip, as Tsuna labeled it in his head, he dialed the number on the business card.

"VOOOOIIII! Who _dares_ to call the boss's number?!"

Tsuna had to hold the phone at least an arm away until he heard the end of the sentence. "Hello, this is Tsuna from Kawahira's Baked Goodies —

"TRASH! What the hell are you thinking calling this number?!"

"I was going to say we only deliver on Sundays, and I was going to ask how many cakes —

"You idiot! If the boss says he wants a cake every week, he wants a cake every week!"

"But —

"Don't ever call again!" And he hung up.

Tsuna sighed as he ended the call. He rubbed his fingers against his temples and contemplated the long-haired man's words; _he wants a cake every week,_ that meant their boss only needed one cake per week. And because of the lack of a specific day, that meant they could send the cake at anytime.

He grimaced. Uncle Kawahira didn't want him to, but Tsuna insisted to be the delivery boy every Sunday. Kawahira's Baked Goodies opened Mondays to Fridays, ten in the morning until seven in the evening, and closed all day on Saturday and Sunday. The deliveries were intended to be done on Sundays, but no one wanted to have their cakes delivered until yesterday, so Uncle Kawahira never found a delivery person. Tsuna thought he hadn't really done anything for the past week. If the trend continued then he might as well help out during the Sunday delivery. It's only one order per week, anyway.

With a little help from Uncle Kawahira, they also learned that Xanxus Vongola, CEO of Varia Venture, liked to do his work at home. Which was a little better in Tsuna's opinion. How could he ever explain to the receptionist that he was delivering cakes to the CEO on a weekly basis? Said CEO didn't look like the type to eat cakes on a weekly basis too.

He sighed again, suddenly feeling the world on his shoulders. Today was Thursday, so at least he'd have two more days to prepare himself.

The telltale sounds of the bell alerted him of a new customer.

"Ohh, what a cute little shop," Tsuna's eyes found the person and he suddenly felt the urge to shiver. The white hair and lavender eyes gave Tsuna a bad feeling of dread and an odd sense of familiarity, as if he'd seen this person before. Maybe in his dreams?

"Ah, Tsuna-kun!" the guy sauntered over to him as if they were long-time friends and his fight-or-flight response was flaring up like crazy again. Did Tsuna really know this person? But he had no memory of this guy!

"W-welcome," he decided to play it safe, gripping the edges of the counter to keep himself from running away, "How may I help you?"

The guy grinned. "Oh! You don't know me and I don't know you. I saw your name tag." Tsuna knew when a smile was creepy or not and this one was definitely off-the-charts creepy. And for some reason, he didn't believe what this guy said to him just now.

"I'm Byakuran," he introduced himself, lavender eyes studying Tsuna's face. "Still totes adorbs as ever, Tsunayoshi-kun, no matter what age you are."

Tsuna's body stiffened. For one thing, who even uses the phrase _"totes adorbs"_?! And another thing, that sentence was wrong on so many levels it was making his head hurt.

He gave up. Making sense of things would only make his head hurt worse. "Are you here to purchase a cake, Byakuran-san?" he smiled as best as he could.

"Yes of course!" Byakuran seemed to light up as his eyes wandered over the cake display, making Tsuna exhale a breath he didn't know he was holding in. His eyes lit up even more when he saw something at the display. "I'd like to have a whole cake of _Fluffy Feather._ "

The cake full of marshmallows, Tsuna mulled over in his head as he prepared the cake for boxing.

This was the first time somebody else entered the shop while he had another customer. The Varia didn't count, they were a bunch of weirdos that liked to crowd.

 _Speaking of crowding._

"Welcome!" Tsuna greeted the newcomer who was none other than Hibari Kyouya.

While tying the box with a ribbon, Tsuna noted the strange tension in the air, with Byakuran watching Hibari and Hibari sitting at one of the chairs, as if waiting for something. In the end, Tsuna had to call Byakuran's attention and they completed the transaction, but not before Byakuran sent him a wistful gaze which was very weird in itself.

At Byakuran's departure, Hibari immediately stood up and stepped in front of Tsuna's counter.

"Yes?" Tsuna gulped, unsure of what to do next. Hibari did say he didn't like sweets . . .

"Herbivore," he began, a little growl added in his voice, "I saw you crowding yesterday."

 _Yesterday?_ But that was when the Varia —

Wait. Was Hibari there? He didn't remember Hibari being there.

"W-wait, Hibari-san," he put up his arms before he could be bitten to death, "They're the ones who were crowding, not me! I was just an audience!" He was the goddamned employee, as if he had a choice!

Hibari could have seen the merit in his words, since he retracted his tonfas — when did those even get there — and settled for crossing his arms.

They stared at each other for a few more seconds before Tsuna realized he was _waiting_ for an explanation.

Oh man, since when did he owe Hibari an explanation? But that didn't matter, this man was clearly waiting for one.

"Okay, so this group of people went in the shop," he began, noticing Hibari's eyes lighting up in recognition, "and they wanted to eat cake. Their boss, apparently, liked the cake so much, he had me deliver it every week to his house."

This was when he noticed Hibari's arms twitch. Tsuna now knew why he chose to cross his arms; this was to prevent himself for lashing out with his tonfas.

"Little animal, repeat it."

"R-repeat what?"

"Repeat your last statement or _I'll bite you to death_."

Tsuna felt himself flinch. "The boss liked the cake? He wanted it delivered every week to his house?"

"And _who_ will deliver it?" Hibari was slowly uncrossing his arms now in proportion to Tsuna's rising fear.

"M-me?"

"And _when_ will this happen?"

"Every Sunday —

"You are a stupid little animal, Sawada Tsunayoshi."

"Hiiiieee — please don't bite me to death, _Hibari-saaaan_ —

* * *

Tsuna was safe. He was not bitten to death.

But in the end he received a bite. He didn't know how it happened and how the circumstances led to it; all he knew was one moment he's dodging attacks and the next he's pinned on the ground, Hibari on top and Hibari's teeth clamped against the left side of his neck. It hurt, maybe even drew blood but as soon as it happened Hibari was out the door. Although, Tsuna didn't miss the smug look on his face as he moved away from his neck.

Tsuna thought getting bitten was better than getting bitten to death, but he'd rather not get bitten at all.

Uncle Kawahira laughed at the silliness of everything and assured him the mark would be gone in a couple of days. Tsuna surely wished so, the mark looked nasty and it was already beginning to purple all around.

"I think your cake shop is haunted, Uncle Kawahira," Tsuna joked as he held up a mirror to look at the bite. "A lot of strange things has been happening to me for the past week."

"Do you believe in the supernatural, Tsuna-kun?"

"No, not really," he put down the mirror and sighed. "But it would make things easier to accept."

"That's true."

* * *

On the way home, Tsuna met a rather depressing scene; a guy probably around his age was sprawled on the ground, half-dead. Or at least Tsuna thought he was half-dead; he's barely moving!

"Are you okay?" he knelt beside the man who had a lot of bandages plastered on his face and arms.

"I'm fine," he mumbled, more to the ground than to Tsuna, as he didn't even bother looking at the other's eyes. "I just tripped. Then the ground felt nice. Then you came along."

Tsuna didn't like the explanation, but he was clearly unwelcome here. "Well, if you're sure . . ." Tsuna managed to stop himself before he stood. What if this man was just embarrassed to admit his predicament? Tsuna was a victim of bullying too, he knew one when he saw one! He went back to kneeling and glared at the man sprawled on the ground.

"You're coming with me."

* * *

"Mom! I'm home!" Tsuna entered the Sawada residence, a half-dead man leaning against his shoulders. Sawada Nana emerged from the kitchen and gasped in shock.

"Tsu-kun!" her already big eyes widened in surprise, "Who's the nice, good-looking man you're bringing into our lovely home?"

"Hello," the nice, good-looking half-dead man greeted Nana.

Tsuna could feel himself blushing at Nana's words. "Mom, seriously, don't put it that way. This guy's obviously beaten up."

"I tripped," the guy quickly corrected, coughing a little bit.

"You do have a penchant for bringing home adorable boys, Tsu-kun."

Tsuna frowned, but he rolled his eyes at his mom in mock annoyance. "You're scaring him."

"Not scared," the guy corrected again, and Tsuna helped him sit down on the living room couch.

"I'll get the first aid kit. Try to entertain him for the meantime, hmm, Tsu-kun?"

"Go away," Tsuna admonished his mom who only giggled in response as she went up the stairs.

"Thank you for doing this," the guy sighed, looking dejected. "My house is further away and I don't think I'll reach it in one piece."

"You can say that again." Tsuna looked at the cuts and bruises on this guy's arms. Most of them were old cuts that opened up during his _accident_ , or whatever it was he wanted to call it with. After bringing the guy some drinkable water and his mom bringing the first aid kit (teases aside), Tsuna was bandaging up the guy with expert precision and finesse.

"Are you a doctor?" the guy asked, awestruck.

"Hardly," Tsuna laughed, tying a bandage securely. "Just years of experience."

"I'm Kozato Enma," he suddenly blurted out of nowhere that it had to have been out of character of him; he looked away in embarrassment and tried to hide his quickly reddening cheeks.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi," Tsuna smiled, finishing another bandage. "Or Tsuna for short. And to clarify my answer to your question, I work at a cake shop."

* * *

"Enma-kun left already?"

"Yeah, he still had classes tomorrow, he said."

"By the way, Tsu-kun, you have a filthy-looking bite mark on your neck. Did Enma-kun?"

"GAH! Mom, of course not! This was from an entirely different reason!"

"You mean, a different guy, right?"

"W-well, yeah — but don't take it the wrong way! _Mom!"_

" _Mou_ , Tsu-kun, you're almost twenty and you're a guy. I'm hardly surprised."

"But it's not because of _that_ — come on. It's from a fight, a one-sided fight at that, and this guy bit me in retaliation."

"A fight? Is that what they call it nowadays?"

A groan. "Now you're just teasing me."

A giggle. "Of course I am, Tsu-kun~"

"I'll bring him here someday and make him admit the truth."

"Okay, sure. I'd love to meet him!"

"I'm telling you, he challenged me and bit me for some reason." Retreating footsteps.

"Uh-hmm."

"That guy's crazy!" A door slam.

Nana's giggles could be heard across the house as Tsuna struggled to find a scarf to hide his bruise for the next few days.


	5. Watch

_uploaded on June 25, 2015_

Thank you for all the feedback! I read all of your reviews seriously and take them to heart. Thanks again for reading this crazy little story.

Somebody brought up Reborn (and the Arcobaleno in general). They will show up . . . eventually. Don't get me wrong, I'm not putting them off (you will notice I'm a huge Reborn fan when you check my tumblr — msleilei is my username). I have a plan for them (or something).

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Watch**

* * *

Tsuna failed to find a scarf. He had no shirts that covered the neck.

Tsuna was suspicious somebody raided his closet; he was sure he had at least a handful of different scarves in reserve. He also had a few jackets that could be zipped up to the neck. _All missing._ Nana left the house earlier than him and Tsuna didn't have the heart to break into her room and get her girly scarves despite his desperation.

He arrived on work on time while ignoring the strange looks he received on the way.

Somebody was already waiting outside the shop before opening hours.

"Umm," Tsuna glanced at his watch. Nine-thirty-two in the morning. Twenty-eight minutes left before opening time.

"Oh! Don't mind me, I know the opening hour's at ten. I'm a little excited," the guy laughed sheepishly, looking at Tsuna. "I'll wait here."

"Okay," Tsuna nodded and entered the shop, announcing his arrival to no one in particular. Uncle Kawahira's voice from the kitchen welcomed him inside.

While preparing the cash register, Tsuna looked outside to see the guy still standing there expectantly. He felt a little guilty making him wait outside, but the opening hours were followed for a reason. If he started to let customers early then he'd have to do it for _everyone_ who arrived early and he didn't want to do that.

As soon as the clock struck ten, the guy stepped inside with eagerness. "Hello!"

"W-welcome!" Tsuna felt awkward.

The guy was already looking at their choice of cakes for the day and settled his eyes on one. "What's this?" he pointed at the blue cake with wave-like decorations.

"We call it the Mesmerizing Rain cake. It's a sponge cake filled with blue buttercream and glazed with blue vanilla icing."

"Sounds good. I'll take a whole cake."

While Tsuna prepared the order, he decided to let his curiosity win over him this time. "If you don't mind me asking," he muttered, carefully placing the box cover, "Where did you hear about this place?"

"Mmm? What made you think I heard it from someone?"

"Well, you said you're _excited_ to try the cakes, so I kind of assumed you know someone who tasted our cakes and shared his opinion with you."

The guy chuckled out loud, earning a little of blush of embarrassment from Tsuna. Did he assume wrong?

"Half-right. That man would probably kill me first before _sharing_ anything with me," he grinned. "I overheard his subordinates talking about a certain cake shop when they went to Namimori."

 _Subordinates? Murderous man? Was he talking about —_ "Varia?" he mumbled aloud.

"Yup! We're business partners. Dino Cavallone, by the way," he extended his hand out and Tsuna took it almost willingly.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi," he smiled, looking down at the cake. "You can call me Tsuna."

"I see!" Dino suddenly exclaimed, beaming at Tsuna. "You're that guy!"

Tsuna's eyes widened. "W-what guy?"

"The guy!" Dino grinned wider.

Tsuna panicked more. "What guy?!"

"The guy that sold the cake to them!"

 _Oh._

It was only then Tsuna realized they're still holding hands. He tried to remove his but Dino's grip was too strong.

"Expectations exceeded," Dino hummed, letting go of Tsuna's hand.

If whatever Dino had in his mind right now was related to the Varia, Tsuna didn't want to know. _Really_ didn't want to know. He finished the sale as quick as he could while Dino reached into his pocket and handed Tsuna a business card. "Please have this."

Tsuna accepted the item and looked it over. "Do you want cakes delivered to you too?"

Dino chuckled. "I want to talk with you, but only when you feel like it. You'll find my number there. See you again, Tsuna!"

And he's gone.

It took a full minute before Tsuna realized what the man was proposing to him and he felt his whole body flush red. He stared at the words printed on the card; _Dino Cavallone, Cavallone Enterprises, CFO._

His life was certainly going crazier by the minute.

* * *

"I finally found you, Tsuna-sama!"

Tsuna stopped whatever it was he's doing and looked at the door. There he was, the guy who was almost run over by a truck a few days ago.

"Hayato, right? How are you?" Tsuna beamed at him, noticing the lack of bandages.

"I heal fast, Tsuna-sama, so please don't worry about me!" He looked around the cake shop with interest. "So you work for this suspicious cake shop after all. You know, I tried waiting for you at the intersection where the thing happened. But then I realized you haven't appeared for three days so it might have been a one-time event when you went there. So I started searching all the shops in the area until I got here and here you are! I'm so lucky!"

Tsuna tried his best not to facepalm. That wasn't luck, he thought, that was extremely good effort. He had to admit he was touched at the devotion this guy had, but he personally believed he didn't deserve it.

"Thank you, Hayato, but you didn't have to look for me."

"Nonsense, Tsuna-sama. From that day onwards I swore to protect you with all my might and — what the hell is that on your neck?!"

On impulse Tsuna's hand shot up to feel the sting of the bruise, and he could feel the bumps of the mark. "It's a bruise from a fight," he sighed, suddenly feeling tired from trying to explain the same thing to his mom last night.

Now that he thought about it, Dino never made a comment about it . . . the guy had some tact.

"Who attacked you, Tsuna-sama? Do you want me to kill him?" Hayato began pulling out a bunch of lighters and lighter fluid from under his clothes. _Immolation?!_

"No! No killing!" Tsuna panicked, and seeing his distress, Hayato tucked away his stuff. "It's already dealt with, Hayato. Thank you."

Hayato looked like he was about to cry again. "Why haven't I met you earlier, Tsuna-sama? The fates are cruel to me!"

Tsuna, despite being surrounded by weirdos for the past week, never let himself become numb to everything. These people still had their emotions after all, no matter how weird they were. Leaving his post for a bit he went around the counter and stood in front of Hayato.

"Don't worry too much about it, Hayato," he smiled fondly, grasping the other's hand. "What's important is we know each other now, right? It's never too late to become friends with someone. Maybe our meeting had its merits, despite the rather extreme circumstances! We're both here, we're both alive and breathing and we're able to talk to one another. How great is that, right?"

"You're too kind," Hayato finally cried on his right arm and using his left, he grabbed Tsuna in a tight hug. "I will protect you with my body, heart and soul, Tsuna."

Tsuna's heart skipped a beat with his words. They barely knew each other and yet this guy right here was swearing his life away as if he's someone worth it. Tsuna also didn't fail to miss the lack of honorifics with his declaration of devotion, and somehow, it made his speech all the more real and serious.

"I'm unable to be with you for twenty-four-seven, Tsuna-sama," Hayato pulled away, his eyes already dry, "but I promise to watch over you with every chance I get. Shows are usually intermittent but I could always cancel if there's an emergency, so never hesitate to call me for help."

Tsuna blinked. "Shows? Cancel?"

"I'm a professional pianist," he mumbled as if it was no big deal, "I sometimes appear on concerts or TV shows. But that's not the point!" He took out his phone. "Please tell me your number, Tsuna-sama!"

Still dazed, Tsuna exchanged numbers with Hayato.

"Thank you for being kind to me, Tsuna-sama," Hayato gave him one last hug and, much to Tsuna's surprise, he also pecked him on the forehead. "I have to go."

He left in a heartbeat and Tsuna's head was still reeling from the strangeness of everything.

* * *

"Sasagawa-sensei's _horrible_ , Tsuna-nii," Lambo whined as he sat in the shop, munching on his Lightning Boom cake (which he finally had enough money for after saving up the past days, he said). "I always dread P. E. time."

"Oh?" Tsuna snickered behind his hand. "What did he do?"

"Not _did_ , more like _doing_ ," Lambo took another bite, "He makes us run laps till the end of time. We're middle schoolers, not professional athletes! _Too Spartan!_ " He ate another spoonful in annoyance.

One might be wondering why Lambo, a middle schooler, was eating cake and talking about anything he wanted inside Kawahira's Baked Goodies. If somebody asked Tsuna, he didn't know why either. He's taking it in stride though; Lambo was a good kid. Adorable too, albeit a little weird like the rest of the weird things happening to him for the past week.

"He's nicer to the girls," the kid continued. "There's a girl in my class, I-Pin, who likes him, you know? I think he's a pedo!"

"Lambo . . ." Tsuna frowned.

"I'm sorry Tsuna-nii," Lambo quickly bowed down his head. "He pisses me off. Stupid sensei."

Tsuna was re-evaluating his initial assessment of Lambo when the door bells chimed.

"Lambo?"

Lambo's head shot up. "Shouichi-nii!"

 _Shouichi-nii_ laughed. "When I heard there's a newly-opened cake shop, I kind of figured out you'd be here, you glutton."

"I'm not a glutton," Lambo pouted with cake in his mouth. "Oh yeah! Shouichi-nii, meet Tsuna-nii. Tsuna-nii, this is Shouichi-nii."

"Hi?" Tsuna smiled, tilting his head a little.

Shouichi-nii stared at him in surprise. Then promptly grabbed his stomach as he leant over on Lambo's table.

Tsuna was next to him in an instant. "Are you okay?!" Did this guy have a stomach ache? He remembered Uncle Kawahira say they had Tylenol for stuff like this.

Lambo, for being his friend, didn't look so worried. "Don't mind him, Tsuna-nii," he waved his fork around, "Shouichi-nii's just nervous."

"I-I'm not nervous," the guy muttered but Tsuna could clearly see his face, as red as it could get before he looked away. What's up with him?

"A-Anyway, Lambo," he spoke again when he recovered, "If you're going to play around, at least let auntie know."

"No way! She'll make me share my cake!"

"You don't have to tell her you're eating cake! Just let her know you'll be home late. I can't always look for you!"

"Tell her you're busy."

"You know I can't do that."

"That's 'cause you're lame, Shouichi-nii."

"Y-you brat!"

"Umm . . ." Tsuna stepped back, clearly not part of the conversation. "I'll be over there . . ." he mumbled, returning to his spot behind the cash register. The two didn't seem to notice as they continued their bickering.

"'Sides, I don't want her to know about this place! This is my safe haven!"

"Like I said, you don't have to say you go here —

" _You_ shouldn't be here, Shouichi," Lambo now stood up from his chair, abandoning his half-eaten cake. He suddenly had an aura of seriousness that's not really suited for a middle-schooler, Tsuna thought, and for some reason the atmosphere felt like a fight was about to break out. _Why_ , Tsuna wanted to freak out, _they were fine moments ago_ _!_ He couldn't have customers fighting inside the shop, that's bad for business!

Shouichi was now standing straight and looking just as serious. Tsuna gulped; maybe he should interfere now? Or should he wait till the actual fight starts? He didn't know how this worked! And he couldn't ask Uncle Kawahira for help, the man was on his tea break!

Lambo continued, "Maybe you should leave now before the great Lambo kills you with a fork."

"No killing!" Tsuna finally shouted, unable to contain himself. He used the same words to stop Hayato . . . and Tsuna suddenly felt he's going to be using that sentence more often in the future. That's not a nice feeling, by the way.

Lambo and Shouichi were undeterred. Lambo's grip on his fork tightened and Shouichi's hand began to reach for something in his bag.

 _They're really going to fight here?!_ Tsuna was panicking.

Lambo yelled. "TSUNA-NII IS MINE —

They all stopped.

Lambo gulped. "I — I mean, Tsuna-nii's . . . cake is mine . . . N-no, wait, Tsuna-nii's my secret — uhh —" Lambo glanced at Tsuna, looking very flustered and red and borderline crying that Tsuna didn't know how to react. Tears finally spilled. "Must stay calm . . ."

Shouichi laughed! He actually laughed! Tsuna stared at him in disbelief. "Who's the lame one now, Lambo?"

"S-shut up, Shouichi-nii! I only pretended to say it like that but I actually meant this cake shop is my secret!"

"Yes, yes," the guy sighed, and after what seemed like a long while, he finally acknowledged Tsuna's presence. "I am very sorry about what happened," he bowed, and standing next to Lambo, he forced Lambo's head down in apology. "Lambo's a wild and crazy kid. What happened was normal between us."

 _I'll believe anything now,_ Tsuna nodded dumbly. "Are you cousins?"

"Just neighbors," Shouichi smiled. "Let me introduce myself properly. Irie Shouichi."

"Sawada Tsunayoshi. Call me Tsuna."

"Thank you for watching over this guy," he still held on Lambo's head, forcing it to a bow, while the boy continued to sniffle and try to hold back his tears. "We'll leave as soon as he finishes his cake."

Tsuna frowned a little bit. "You can stay as long as you like."

"I think we already caused enough mental trauma for the day."

Tsuna nodded dumbly again and just let them be. In the meantime, he wondered where his normal, ordinary life went.


	6. Trip

_uploaded on July 1, 2015_

Thank you once again for the wonderful reviews and to all who are still reading on. Haha!

I try to introduce characters into the story so it might take a while to "return" to already-introduced characters. Somehow, there is a plot, but I don't know where it came from! As for aurla0's question about Hibari-san, he is a weirdo . . . Well of them are weird. Except Tsuna, the Only Sane Man.

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Trip**

* * *

It was Sunday.

Tsuna couldn't sleep. Whoever said he's fearless? Even though he volunteered to deliver the cake, he's still nervous about meeting those weirdos again. In his desperation to get rid of the bad mood, he went out of the house at five in the morning to take an early morning walk, not forgetting the scarf he finally managed to find.

He wasn't surprised to meet Ryohei on the streets. "Morning jog?"

"Yes!"

"Like clockwork," Tsuna teased. "I remember the times Kyoko-chan would ask for help looking for you, saying you left your water bottle _again_ for your morning workout."

"I'm extremely forgetful!" he laughed, then suddenly tensed. "Ahh, now that you mention it . . ."

This time it was Tsuna's turn to laugh. "It's a good thing Kyoko-chan trained me." He held out a water bottle to Ryohei.

"Thank you, Tsuna."

After years of getting him to say his name, Tsuna felt like he accomplished something. He thought it sounded kind of nice.

* * *

Tsuna would ride the train to Kawamoku at ten in the morning. To Xanxus Vongola's estate.

But it's only seven in the morning, so he still had plenty of time to spare. Going back to sleep was out of the question. Instead he decided to be a good son to his mom and offered to make breakfast so she could relax.

 _Making_ breakfast was really pushing it though. He wanted to try something different, like what he read online, and a sweet, Italian breakfast sounded good. It usually involved only coffee (something he knew his mom liked, although unbecoming) and pastries (another thing his mom liked), which could all be purchased at the shopping district. So yes, the word _making_ was pushing it.

His mom was _ecstatic_. She was willing to wait while he made his trip to purchase their breakfast.

He just wanted to please his mom, really. He's being nice and stuff like that.

It was one of the biggest regrets he ever had.

"Ah, Tsunayoshi-kun~"

 _Regret._

"Keki-san?"

 _What the heck is a keki-san?!_

"It's this guy? I see nothing special!"

Tsuna liked to think he was ordinary, so that comment was a compliment for him.

"You're a poor judge of character, Ken."

Then again, being ordinary seemed out of reach these days.

"What brings you to our humble cafe, Tsunayoshi-kun?" the creepy pineapple guy smirked, his smile telling something inside him of many, many bad and unknown things that he never, ever wanted to know.

Tsuna was frozen at the doorway as he stared at the sight before him. Creepy pineapple guy was behind the counter, his elbows leaning on it as he rested his chin on his palms. Pineapple girl — his sister, as Tsuna remembered — stood beside a table, holding a rag. A blond guy with spiky hair was seated on one of the empty chairs and a guy with a beanie was in front of the coffee machines.

 _Our cafe?_ Tsuna glanced at the "Café Illusione" sign hanging on the wall behind the creepy pineapple guy. He was still smirking at him.

"Umm, so," Tsuna mumbled, trying to ignore the chills running down his spine, "You own this cafe, huh."

"Built it from the ground up," he was still grinning, while the rest of his staff returned to what they were doing before Tsuna entered the shop.

Tsuna was already halfway turned. "Great. I just passed by. I'll be taking my leave —

"Kufufufu, nonsense, Tsunayoshi-kun~" he began _stalking_ towards him and Tsuna almost bolted away out of instinct, if not for the pinning stare from not only _him_ but also from the other guys. "You entered our shop, so you must want to buy something."

Tsuna forced a smile. "I changed my mind —

He stopped less than a feet from him, towering close. _Too close!_ "What was it?"

Tsuna had no choice now. He could lie, sure, but he knew he's a terrible liar. "Caffè latte and cappuccino . . ."

The creepy pineapple guy gestured something with his hand and the guy with the beanie began working on making the drinks. The girl gave him a small smile. "Chikusa is great at making coffee."

"Why don't you sit down while you wait?" the creepy guy put a hand on his shoulder and guided him to one of the seats. Tsuna could feel himself twitch from the unwanted contact. Was this guy a creep to everyone? For some reason, he heard a voice from inside him tell him, " _No. Only to you."_ and that didn't really make anything better.

Thankfully, the creepy guy left his side when customers began entering the shop. The girl went over to him.

"I am Chrome," she introduced herself, and gesturing to the other staff she named them, "The one making your coffee is Chikusa. The other guy is Ken. And the one who welcomed you is my brother, Mukuro."

Tsuna couldn't help but smile. Finally, some semblance of normality in his already weird world. "I'm Tsuna. You were at Kawahira's the other day, right?"

"Y-yes," she blushed, bowing down to hide her red face. "I was looking at the cakes . . . Research."

"Research?"

"I was thinking our cafe could add cakes to the menu . . . Currently we only have pastries . . . but then we tasted the cake at Kawahira's and . . . we kind of abandoned the idea . . ."

 _The cake is too good, huh?_ Tsuna swelled with pride as he heard that even though he was just the one selling them.

Mukuro appeared with his drinks and placed them on his table. "Your order, Tsunayoshi-kun."

 _Again with his name._ "How much?"

"How would you like to work for _my cafe_ instead?" Mukuro grinned in a way that was _so_ not suspicious at all.

Tsuna looked away. "P-pass . . ."

"Kufufufu~ maybe someday, ne? I'll whisk you away from that suspicious place."

* * *

Tsuna didn't want to be whisked away. So he made his way home as fast as he could after getting their breakfast.

His mom was so happy when he arrived. In fact, a little bit too happy. That's when he noticed another person hanging out in their kitchen.

"It is good to see you again, Tsuna-chan!"

"You too, Basil! What brings you to Japan?"

Basil was his dad's assistant. As for his dad? He's a businessman based in Italy and Tsuna didn't know much about him since he's rarely home. In fact, _Basil_ was more frequently "home" than he ever was; whenever there's an errand that needed to be done outside the country, it's usually Basil who handled it. His dad had some strange influence on this guy though, like the usage of _Tsuna-chan_ which was quite silly and embarrassing.

"I am here on a business trip, like always. But only for a few days." Basil procured a box. "And here is a gift from your father."

Tsuna took the box reluctantly. "Thanks, Basil." His mind was already dreading the contents of the gift.

"We were just talking about Papa, Tsu-kun. There's a big chance he'll be home for the holidays!"

"Great," Tsuna mumbled, glancing away. He didn't know if he should be happy or annoyed. He hadn't seen the man in three years.

"He is very excited about it, so please do not worry, Tsuna-chan," Basil piped up. He probably saw Tsuna's glum expression that Tsuna quickly schooled himself back to a smile.

"Thank you again, Basil. Well then, please let me excuse myself, I need to prepare for work."

"You have work on a Sunday?"

"Tsu-kun's shaping up to be a responsible young man!"

" _Mom_!"

* * *

As soon as Tsuna entered his room, he wasted no time to open the box. Best get it over with, he thought.

He was surprised to see a note on top.

 _Tsuna,_

 _I know you always feel bad receiving gifts from Boss. He is a busy man, but it is no excuse to see his family every once in a while, right? I think he is lame too. I respect him as a Boss, but not as a parent._

 _His gift was a silly stuffed toy. I already donated it to an orphanage. I think he forgot you are 19._

 _This gift is from me! I hope you like it._

 _Basil_

Tsuna held back his tears as best as he could. He found a box of _cioccolata modicana_ inside, and another smaller, square box. He opened it and there was another note on a smaller piece of paper.

 _I am not proposing! I saw this and it reminded me of you._

It was a ring.

Tsuna laughed out loud. How could a ring remind somebody of someone?

* * *

"Where's Basil?" Tsuna popped into the kitchen. His mom was alone.

"He left as soon as you went up to your room," his mom turned around and grinned at him. "He seemed to be in a hurry too, talking about a flight to Sapporo."

"Oh." Tsuna was disappointed but he tried his best not to show it to his face. After all, he wanted to thank Basil personally for the gift . . . now he had to do it through phone or email.

"You know, Tsu-kun," his mom continued smiling at him, "Basil's been really good to us for the past two years we've known him."

"Yeah, he has."

"He's twenty-four. Five years of age difference is not a big deal nowadays."

Tsuna wanted to cry. "Mom, why do you insist on hooking me up with random people?!"

Nana glared at him. "Basil is _hardly_ random, Tsu-kun! And I'm just thinking about your future."

"By hooking me up with guys," he deadpanned.

"I didn't say the future involved having kids. Even then we have the technology —

" _MOM!_ "

* * *

Tsuna hightailed it out of their house as fast as he could. He's never safe anywhere, not even around his mom!

And as soon as he stepped out, he felt at least three sets of eyes watching him. He looked around the street but he saw no one.

 _Never safe anywhere._

In order to avoid arousing suspicion, he walked very, very briskly towards Namimori Station even if it's still far away. He didn't care right now; his intuition had never failed him before so he was pretty positive there's at least one following him. That didn't ease the growing tension within him.

At the next corner, he pressed himself against the wall and took a peek at the area where he came from. He saw a quick flash of yellow before it disappeared into a different corner.

At least his gut feeling was right again.

 _Not safe._

Now bolting to a run, he went straight for Kawahira's Baked Goodies and didn't stop until he set foot inside the shop.

Uncle Kawahira was at the counter, looking perplexed. "What happened, Tsuna-kun?"

"S-stalker . . . outside?" he mumbled in between breaths, clutching his chest.

Understanding completely, Uncle Kawahira peeked outside the shop. "Nothing out of the ordinary."

"Maybe he, she or whatever it was left." Now calmed down, Tsuna crumbled on the floor, exhausted from all the running he did. He seriously needed to work out more. "I'll be delivering the cake in a bit, Uncle Kawahira," he added, wheezing.

"Are you sure you're okay, Tsuna-kun?" Uncle Kawahira showed a rare display of worry (most of the time he laughed at Tsuna's demise).

"Am fine, just need to rest." He pulled off his scarf so he can breathe better. Tsuna hoped the _stalker_ had left him alone for good, even for just today. He could deal with it some other time. Right now, he had a schedule to keep.

* * *

Tsuna accidentally left his scarf while resting at the cake shop. He only remembered halfway through the train ride.

Oh well. It's not as if anybody cared anyway.


	7. Red

_uploaded on July 5, 2015_

Thanks again for the lovely reviews, follows and favorites! Of course a big thank you too to those silently reading this silly story.

I must apologize in advance for this chapter. You'll see . . .

Please enjoy anyway!

* * *

 **Red**

* * *

The train ride from Namimori to Kawamoku was thirty minutes long.

The bus ride from Kawamoku station to the Varia CEO's estate was fifteen minutes long.

 _Too fast,_ Tsuna thought as he arrived at the huge mansion gates that were not far from what he imagined.

The amount of suit-wearing bodyguards was far from his imagination though. Was it normal to have a hundred bodyguards loitering around the courtyard? One of them approached him with a menacing aura.

"Name and purpose," the man demanded after mumbling something in his headset.

"T-Tsuna, I'm here to deliver a cake to Xanxus Vongola." He held up the box.

All eyes were immediately on him. It was one of those times where he felt like crawling somewhere and hide for the next five days.

The man frantically mumbled something again in his headset — was that Italian? He knew how it sounded like from Basil — while the other men around him were panicking for some mysterious reason. The man also kept glancing at him while he muttered in the mic, maybe he's providing a physical description to whoever he's talking to? Tsuna had seen that sort of stuff in movies.

"You may enter," the man finally turned his attention to him, and the rest parted ways to give him a path. Tsuna waited nervously while they let him in through the gate.

"Ushishishi~ the kitten arrives!"

"Bel-senpai, I thought he's a puppy?"

"Do you want to die, Fran?"

Tsuna stared at the two weirdos who appeared out of nowhere. The blond guy with hair covering his eyes and the teenager with a silly-looking hat.

 _Too fast!_

"The Prince is here to accompany you, little kitten," Bel stalked towards him, arms wide open.

"T-thanks?" Tsuna flinched away on instinct while hugging the box.

Fran's face was blank. "Ahh, don't mind him. 'The prince' is socially inept."

Tsuna reckoned all of Varia were socially inept.

Pens flew out of nowhere. Tsuna immediately learned that _nowhere_ was from Bel and those freaking pens were really good for stabbing things. Said freaking stabby pens were lodged at Fran's back.

"I'd rather not have pens sticking out of my back, Bel-senpai," he sighed, pulling out the pens one by one.

"Are you human?!" Tsuna screamed, backing away.

"Unfortunately," Fran sighed.

" _Fortunately_ ," Bel grinned, teeth showing. "That means you can die, bastard."

"Astounding conclusion. Shall I call you a genius now, Bel-senpai?"

"Of course. I'm the Prince, after all."

Tsuna's head was spinning. He had no idea what the heck was happening.

"Please," Tsuna mumbled, already feeling weak from the weirdness of everything, "No flying pens in my presence."

Bel pulled out a pen and spun it with his fingers. "How about spinning pens?"

"No pens please!"

"Now you've done it, Bel-senpai," Fran rushed towards Tsuna's side. "Tsuna-kun's mad!"

Tsuna's brown eyes widened in an instant. "I'm not mad!" _Oh man._ He still wanted to live despite his no-good life. If this continued maybe this crazy _Bel-senpai_ would throw the pens at _him_. He wouldn't survive it like Fran did!

The man who approached Tsuna earlier spoke up. "Sir Belphegor, Sir Fran, the Boss is . . . impatient."

And as if to emphasize his point, a voice sounded from somewhere, "VOOOOOIIIII! What the hell are you idiots doing?! The boss _needs_ his cake!" Tsuna noticed everyone around him had taken out their ear receivers and held it at arm's length.

"Well, it was fun while it lasted," Bel giggled, gesturing to the mansion. "Shall we go, little kitten?"

"I'm not a kitten," Tsuna pouted, but he followed them anyway. As if he had any other choice.

* * *

Tsuna didn't like this mansion. It was too big, too eerie, too dark and filled with weirdos. Said weirdos liked to do weird things to him, like Bel who kept giggling and running his finger on Tsuna's nape, or Fran who made antagonistic offhanded remarks about him.

"Do you always look scared, Tsuna-kun?"

"Are you in middle school? You look like you're in middle school."

"I can't believe I'm taller than someone my age."

"Don't glare at me like that, Tsuna-kun!"

"You look cuter when you pout, did you know that?"

Tsuna gave up.

* * *

They arrived to wherever Xanxus Vongola wanted his cake.

Apparently, it was in his private quarters.

And apparently, _somebody_ did care about his lack of scarf.

"What the hell is that?" Xanxus, who was seated on his best chair, pointed at Tsuna's neck.

Tsuna's hand shot up by habit before he realized what this man was referring to. A slight feeling of panic began to well inside him; he looked around and he found the rest of the Varia watching him. He had a brief imagination of a rabbit surrounded by wolves before he gulped.

"Err, it's a bruise from a fight," he explained, remembering the more specific reason and Hibari's smug look of satisfaction. He couldn't help but feel humiliated, finding his cheeks getting warmer.

"Oh my god," Fran yelled, "He's blushing!"

"I-I'm not!" Tsuna yelped as he hid his face in his palms, turning around. Getting stabbed by pens didn't seem so bad right now. He was only here to deliver a cake goddamit, why was he being questioned like this?

He found his courage almost instantly when this realization hit him. He _was_ only here to deliver a cake! He shouldn't let them get to him!

He faced them again. "Your cake is delivered," he gestured at the desk with the box of cake on it. "One Fiery Storm cake. The payment is deducted from the previous transaction." He took out his phone for his notes. "Adding the previous order of one slice of Heavenly Sky cake, you still have seven thousand, nine hundred and ninety Yen as credit." He looked back at them, but more specifically to Xanxus. "Would you like to receive the change now or would you like to continue with the weekly order of cake? You can have approximately four cakes with your credit."

Xanxus growled, piercing daggers with his glare. "Trash, did I ever tell you to stop?"

"Great!" Tsuna smiled and pocketed his phone. "See you next week! I'll be leaving now!"

"We should make him angry more often," Fran muttered, turning to the loud, long-haired guy next to him. "Did you see that?"

"Everyone saw it, idiot," Bel replied instead, grumbling.

"I'm calling dibs!" the effeminate man raised his hand and all eyes (except Tsuna's) were suddenly glaring at him.

Tsuna had no idea what they're talking about and knowing them, he didn't want to know. While they're busy glaring at the effeminate man, Tsuna took his chance and slowly backed up towards the door.

Just a few more steps and —

 _Ringggg!_

All eyes were back on him.

 _I should have put my phone on silent._

Tsuna smiled weakly and took out his phone, glancing at the caller's name. "Gotta take this call. Please, continue what you were doing," he mumbled before turning around and answering the call.

"Tsuna!" a familiar, cheerful voice greeted him.

"Takeshi!" he greeted back, feeling guilty. "I'll talk to you later. I'm in the middle of my delivery."

"You're still there? I thought you're on the way home by now."

"I thought so too. Anyway, call you later?"

"Sure. I'm free the whole day. Wait — why don't I visit you instead?"

"Takeshi . . ."

"Haha! Just kidding, Tsuna! Later!"

Tsuna sighed as he ended the call. He knew Takeshi was only joking, thanks to the mysterious feeling inside him, but sometimes he still felt anxious when it came to him. Takeshi could be a rather impulsive person despite his normally calm behavior.

When he turned back around, they were still watching him.

"Okay . . ." Tsuna gestured to the door. "I should be leaving now."

Xanxus stood up from his chair.

Tsuna felt a huge weight sinking in his stomach. _Leave, get away, run, hide!_ his insides told him, but his body was not very cooperative.

Xanxus stomped towards him.

Tsuna's body finally decided to move, backpedalling the hell away until his back hit the door and Xanxus was looming over him.

Xanxus slammed both hands on the door and trapped Tsuna between his arms. "You're not allowed to do that," he snarled.

Tsuna looked up at him warily with widened, brown eyes. "I'm not allowed to leave?"

"Maybe I should put one on the right to shut you up," Xanxus effectively ignored his question with a random, ambiguous answer that sent Tsuna's instinct on a frenzy, setting off all sorts of alarms. It was maddening!

 _Leave now._

"Sorry, I really have to go," he mumbled as he shrinked back further to the door — if that was even possible — with Xanxus moving in closer and closer —

A pen suddenly lodged itself at the door, mere centimeters away from Tsuna's head. He held back his breath. Xanxus froze.

"Oops, my hand slipped~" Tsuna could hear Bel giggle from afar. He had very limited view since Xanxus blocked everything around him.

"VOOOOIII! Do you have a death wish?!" Tsuna swore he saw a meter stick being flailed around from his limited view. What's up with these weirdoes and their office supplies?! Were they _really_ businessmen?!

"Squalo-senpai, you have to admit Boss is greedy to keep Tsuna-kun all to himself."

Tsuna heard umbrellas being opened. "The Boss can do whatever he wants, kid!"

"Aiyah, Levi, your umbrella is pointed at Xanxus-sama!"

Tsuna saw Xanxus's face contort to rage from the usual disinterest, twisting his body around to face his lackeys, but his arms were still pinned on Tsuna's sides. "Shut the hell up, you worthless trash!"

"Bel-senpai, you made Boss mad."

"Shishishi, he's always mad, you idiot."

"Come now~ Xanxus-sama just wanted to have a little fun with Tsuna-chan."

"Lussuria, you sure have guts to say that out loud!"

Xanxus finally moved away, _reluctantly_ Tsuna's mind supplied, and began walking towards the rest of the Varia. "You're all goddamned noisy!" he growled and Tsuna saw him take out two freaking _staple_ _guns._ STAPLE GUNS! Was he going to use it to shoot his own people?!

 _Staple guns hurt._

Tsuna decided he really didn't want to know. He managed to slip out just before the chaos ensued. At the corridor he could still hear the screams . . .

* * *

"I'm on the way home now."

"Oh? How was the delivery?" Takeshi asked from the other end of the phone line.

Tsuna sighed, running a hand through his hair. He couldn't even begin to describe what it was. Crazy? Insane? Just plain out of this world? Suit-wearing businessmen yielding office supplies as weapons wasn't on the normal side of things! But how the heck could he explain that to Takeshi? It might also make him worry too when Tsuna turned out okay.

"It was . . . a new experience."

"I wish I could've gone with you so I'd know the kind of people they are. You _are_ delivering cakes to them weekly." Tsuna could practically hear Takeshi's grin pour through his voice, the kind of grin that had underlying tones of overprotectiveness and mild annoyance. Takeshi's caring nature was one of the things Tsuna liked about him, after all.

Tsuna relaxed against the seat and closed his eyes. "Thank you Takeshi. But I'd prefer you to focus on your studies, like I keep telling you."

"Even only once? Just so I'd know their faces, their names and their habits?"

"That sounds ominous. . ."

"I'm curious, Tsuna! I'd like to know everyone who befriends you."

Tsuna thought it was kind of silly to think he had "befriended" the Varia.

He heard a sigh. "I already miss hanging around with you."

Tsuna blushed in an instant, eyes flying open. "I-it's only been two weeks, Takeshi!"

"Doesn't change the fact that I miss you."

"C'mon, you're embarrassing me!" Tsuna could already feel the heat from his face reaching his arms.

"Haha, it's only the two of us though? I bet you're really red right now!"

Tsuna knew he was being illogical as he tried to hide his red face from no one in particular. Illogical in a way that, yes, Takeshi was only talking to him through the phone, but he still managed to make him blush!

"Stop messing with me," he grumbled, ignoring the strange looks he received from the other passengers waiting for the train.

"I'm being honest. I do miss you."

Tsuna sighed, accepting the fact his whole body was now a bit too red than he would've liked. "Sometimes I don't understand how you can be so straightforward, Takeshi." If Takeshi could do that then why did he always hide his emotions from others? The fake smile, acting oblivious to everything, just to name a few.

Takeshi's cheery and gentle laugh was music to Tsuna's ears. "I already told you before, right? Only to you, Tsuna."

Was Tsuna selfish for thinking he actually liked that?


	8. Return

_uploaded on July 10, 2015_

Oh man, I'm glad you guys enjoyed the Varia-office-version. They're a bunch of geeks, y'know? I must admit I have a soft spot for the Varia guys.

Thanks again for all the lovely reviews! And for my silent readers, thank you too! I'm just glad I can put a smile on your faces.

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Return**

* * *

Uncle Kawahira decided to close the shop the next day, Monday.

 _You can take a paid day off. It's the least I can do to help ease your suffering from Varia Venture,_ Uncle Kawahira's words ran through Tsuna's mind, not forgetting the teasing laugh that accompanied those words. That man sure loved to see him suffer, didn't he?

So Tsuna was walking around Namimori Station. He'd been working for at least two weeks in the area but he hadn't tried checking out the other shops. He only did it once when he's looking for work, and even then he had forgotten all about it.

His breath almost stopped when he saw a familiar face several steps away. They're about to cross paths, Tsuna realized, but the guy hadn't noticed him yet.

 _Good_ , his mind told him, _hide_.

He was talking to one of his friends. _Distracted._ Tsuna looked around for a good hiding spot when the guy laughed and his eyes moved sideways, landing on _him_.

 _Caught._ No use running away.

Tsuna braced himself when he saw the guy smirk, gestured to his friends about something and separated from them; the rest of the group turned around while the guy continued his walk in their original direction. _To him._

"Well, well . . . if it isn't _dame_ -Tsuna."

"Mochida."

Mochida Kensuke, former captain of both the Namimori Middle and High School Kendo Club. A year older than him. A guy who had the delusion that Tsuna stole _his Kyoko_ for the entirety of their middle school years, when Kyoko-chan was the one running away from him. He tended to get a bit . . . obsessive, Tsuna knew that much.

A bit too much.

"You look different," he gave Tsuna a look-over before his eyes settled on Tsuna's brown eyes.

"I . . . grew, I guess?" Tsuna tried.

"You don't have your guard dog with you. Strange sight."

"Takeshi's not a guard dog!" Tsuna hated it when people looked down on his friends.

"Walking alone in Namimori is not safe for you, you know that right?"

"What are you doing here, Mochida?" Tsuna decided to change the subject. The guy's question didn't have any good answers.

The guy laughed, bitter and spiteful. "What, I'm not allowed back in my hometown?"

"I didn't —

He suddenly grabbed Tsuna's wrist, making Tsuna flinch a little bit before the grip turned softer. "You reek of other guys." It was not a question, neither was it accusatory. Just a plain, regular declaration statement, or so Tsuna thought.

"I'm just me," he replied calmly despite the guy clutching his left arm. "I'm also alone, as you can see. So I don't know what you're talking about."

Mochida only sneered at him. "Maybe you should return with me to Tokyo. Then I can look after you unlike your failure of a guard dog."

Tsuna sighed. "Takeshi's not a guard dog," he repeated, "and besides you're the one talking about reek and smell! So you're more of a dog than him."

"I'll take that as a compliment. I've only gone for a year and he slacked off. Idiot Yamamoto."

Using his free hand, Tsuna ruffled his hair in frustration. The main reason why Takeshi acted like a "guard dog" around Tsuna in the first place was because of this guy! So when Mochida disappeared for University, Takeshi eased off the guarding.

Mochida began pulling at his arm. "I'll go back to Tokyo tomorrow. Start packing your things."

"I — What?!"

"You're not safe here alone," Mochida emphasized, eyes looking around. "So you're coming with me."

 _I'm not safe_ with you _alone,_ Tsuna's mind corrected him.

"Please don't worry about me, Mochida-san. I'll be fine!"

"You're too naive," Mochida growled but he threw away Tsuna's arm. "And fluffy. But mostly naive and that's what will get you in trouble."

Tsuna frowned. "You know I can take care of myself. We had a spar to prove that."

Mochida looked frustrated. "I'm talking about a different kind of trouble . . . but it doesn't matter anyway. In the end, you're still mine. Everybody else is unimportant. That includes your precious guard dog."

"Takeshi's not a guard dog."

* * *

It took a threat of not bothering to reply to his mails to stop Mochida from harassing him. Tsuna didn't know when and how but somehow, at some point during Mochida's obsession with Kyoko-chan, it shifted to _him_. At first, he made them think he's still after Kyoko, ambushing them on their way to lunch or going home, but his eyes were clearly on Tsuna and it was Takeshi who pointed it out.

When confronted about it, Mochida didn't even deny it. In fact, he looked a bit too proud he was able to "choose the best".

Takeshi didn't like that at all.

Kyoko, Hana and Haru found it funny. Girls had a strange way of looking at things.

Well, if it stopped Mochida from harassing Kyoko, then Tsuna was willing to take the brunt of it. And so he did.

* * *

While outside, after spotting Hibari somewhere from afar, glaring straight at him, Tsuna decided it would be better to stay at home.

Afternoon rolled by and he was lying comfortably on his bed, reading a manga about Yakuza and tutors when his mom shouted something from below. Something about a visitor and letting him go ahead to his bedroom. His mom probably trusted this person so it's okay.

There was a knock on his door. "Come in," Tsuna called out and the door opened to reveal Enma. Less bandages than last time, but still had a few here and there.

"Hi, Tsuna," Enma mumbled, stepping into the room. "I came to return the shirt you lent me."

"Hello Enma. I told you you didn't have to, right? I don't get to wear that shirt often anyway, besides it suited you better."

"Couldn't impose," he muttered as he settled the package on Tsuna's table. "You look . . . really comfy."

"Yeah," Tsuna chuckled then gestured to his side. "You can join me on the bed if you like. I'm reading a great manga, you can read it with me! It's hilarious!"

Enma blushed a little at his words. "You could word that sentence better," he mumbled but he took up the offer and laid down beside Tsuna.

Tsuna pointed at various parts of the manga. "See, the main character is called Matteo who lives in Italy and he's destined to be the _oyabun_ in one of the biggest Yakuza family. An old man from Japan — a samurai — arrived to become his home tutor, to train him to be the next _oyabun_."

"That sounds interesting," Enma smiled shyly, then pointed at one of the panels. "The old man has a walking stick but he doesn't seem to be using it."

"Apparently it's something about a curse. He needs it with him at all times since it's keeping him alive from the curse. The old man is actually a hot, twenty-something guy."

"Oh."

The door creaked open and Tsuna saw his mom peek through. "Am I interrupting something?" she giggled.

"Ah, Mama, thank you again for letting me in . . ." Enma mumbled, sitting up properly but didn't get out of the bed.

" _Mama_?" Tsuna raised an eyebrow at Enma, then shifted his eyes to glare at his mom.

"All your friends call me Mama, so I thought I'd also let Enma-kun call me that. Isn't that right my little munchkin?"

"Yep . . ." Enma blushed, looking away. He seemed to be enjoying this, Tsuna thought.

Nana finally entered the bedroom to place a tray of drinks on the table, with some pastries to go with it. "Have fun, boys!" she giggled again before leaving the room in a hurry, dodging the manga that Tsuna threw in her direction which hit the closing door instead.

Enma slid down the bed and crawled to the table, grabbing a cookie from the tray. "Your mother is funny."

"I think she's a little crazy," Tsuna sighed as he followed Enma to the table, but he had a fond smile on his lips. "But her crazy antics _are_ funny."

"I would love to have her as my mom," Enma munched on the cookie. "My whole family is dead," he mentioned casually as if that's a normal topic of conversation.

Tsuna panicked. "I'm sorry to hear that."

Enma only shrugged.

"Y-you could always come over? My mom likes having visitors if you haven't learned that yet," Tsuna tried to comfort him but it seemed to be more for _himself_ rather than Enma. The guy was calm and not showing any signs of sadness at all.

This time, Enma smiled. "Sure . . . I'll keep that in mind."

Tsuna had a slight feeling that Enma was actually fishing for those words to come out of his mouth. Was he that type of sneaky guy?

Before he could come to a conclusion, Enma had climbed back up to the bed and scooted to the farther side. "Join me on the bed, Tsuna."

Tsuna blushed and hid his face. "Now I know what you're talking about earlier. . ."

* * *

Tuesday was customer-free for almost the whole day. Tsuna thought maybe that happened whenever he made a sale from the previous days. His theory was rejected when a new person entered the shop at around five in the afternoon, looking perplexed and confused.

"He told me to come here but he's not here . . ." Tsuna heard the guy mutter, who looked even more lost as he took out his phone and fiddled with it.

"Um, how may I help you?" Tsuna tried to offer good customer service.

The guy took note of him in almost impassive manner. "Have you seen a guy with red hair and glasses?"

"Today? No," Tsuna replied; he didn't need to elaborate that this guy was the _first_ person to enter the shop today. Although somehow, it felt like he knew the person he's describing.

"I'll wait for him. Do you mind?"

Tsuna shook his head. "You can stay as long as you need to, until we close shop that is. Water's free if you want it."

"Water would be great." As soon as he seated on the chair nearest the entrance, Tsuna placed the glass of water on his table. He was about to return to the register when the man stopped him. "Wait, I'll give you this," he pulled out two lollipops from his bag, shaped like a wrench. He held one out to Tsuna.

"Thanks!" He took it almost instantly. Tsuna loved receiving gifts. His intuition wasn't warning him of anything so it should be okay. Without saying another word he peeled off the covering and popped the lollipop in his mouth, smiling all the while at his potential customer.

The guy looked away, muttering, "Shouichi, you bastard . . ."

 _Shouichi?_ Lambo's neighbor?

Tsuna's thoughts were confirmed when the guy in question entered the shop. "Ah! Spanner, you're here!"

"Don't make me wait. Waste of precious time," _Spanner_ already had his lollipop in his mouth.

Shouichi turned to him. "Tsunayoshi."

"Hello," Tsuna nodded and gesturing to the counter, he returned to his spot.

" _This_ is our meeting place?" Spanner looked around, his eyes stopping on the more weird decorations like the bunch of pacifiers lined up on the wall or those weird jars with bright, spinning colors in it scattered around the shop. Tsuna couldn't blame him, Uncle Kawahira was weird like that but oddly enough, the decorations seem to _fit_ this place, despite the strangeness.

Shouichi beamed. "Do you like it? You like sweets, right?"

"Yeah, but . . ." Spanner looked at Tsuna, and Tsuna tilted his head as if to ask _what's up_. Spanner looked back at Shouichi. "A cake shop as our meeting place?"

"It's not as if we're going to meet here everyday. Besides, Tsunayoshi is really nice!"

Tsuna didn't know if he should say thanks, because that would mean he's listening to their conversation.

"I agree," Spanner nodded, looking at Tsuna again and back at Shouichi, "But a _cake shop_?"

Shouichi's smile faltered a little. "It's the middle point between our houses. It's in the train station; heck, it's near the train platform itself. They serve snacks and drinks, plenty of space, you have peace and quiet . . ."

"Yeah, but a _cake shop_?"

"What's really bothering you, Spanner?" Shouichi was now in serious mode, Tsuna noticed, like the time he had an argument with Lambo. "I listed everything you asked for a meeting place and this shop met your criteria, so what?"

"Something feels off," Spanner mumbled, glancing at Tsuna _again_ and back at Shouichi — Tsuna was finding that action stranger by the minute — "I don't think I'll be able to work on our project here if something's distracting me."

Shouichi's eyes widened in surprise. "Distracting —" And then it was obvious that something clicked together in his head, when his eyes widened even further, "Spanner —

"Don't say it, Irie. I mean it."

Like Tsuna thought earlier, he couldn't blame the guy. If he's trying to work here on his assignments he'd be distracted with the weird decoration too.

Shouichi reverted to his calm and composed self, smiling again. "When you're in _work mode_ nothing distracts you anyway. So don't think too much about it! You have to agree with me this place is perfect."

Spanner sighed. "Yes, it is . . . and I like perfection."

"Same time on Friday, then?"

"Fine."

Nodding to Spanner, Shouichi walked over to the cake display. "A slice of Supreme Sunshine cake, please, to go. I'm going to have fun annoying Lambo."


	9. Set

_uploaded on July 15, 2015_

Thanks for all the feedback! I enjoy reading your reviews and suggestions to improve myself and this story. It really means a lot to me!

I still can't believe the number of favorites and follows I have. Just _wao._ Thanks again. I feel so loved!

On that note, I agree, Enma needs more love. Actually, the whole Simon _famiglia_ does so so you will eventually see the rest of them, not just Enma. I'm a sucker for underrated characters.

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Set**

* * *

"Good morning, Tsu-kun!" Nana entered Tsuna's room to find her son already up and about.

"Ah, good morning mom," Tsuna smiled, gathering his bag for work. "What's up?"

"You have a visitor. I was very surprised. He suddenly showed up in the kitchen!"

Tsuna had a very, very bad feeling about that. "What do you mean he _showed up_?"

"Well I was on my way to make breakfast then I saw this guy sitting there. Just like that."

Tsuna stared at her with wide eyes. "And you didn't chase him off?! What if it's a burglar?!"

Nana stayed silent for a few seconds, then smiled, "Nah."

"NAH?!"

She grinned wider. "He looked too _noble_ to be a burglar. He's also pretty handsome. Then he said he's looking for you so I had no doubts."

"Those aren't good reasons, mom! Don't tell me you left him alone in the kitchen."

"Don't be silly, Tsu-kun. Of course I didn't do that."

"Good —

"I left him a snack! He loves marshmallows."

* * *

The feeling was correct. The situation was dire.

The guy with white hair and lavender eyes — Byakuran, if Tsuna remembered correctly — sat in their kitchen, eating marshmallows one at a time. The moment Tsuna stepped into the room, his creepy eyes zeroed on Tsuna, as if he knew the exact moment when Tsuna would appear. Tsuna was deliberating in his head who was creepier: Mukuro or Byakuran? He settled for Byakuran since the guy knew where he freaking lived and entered without permission.

And ate their food. Tsuna was saving those marshmallows for later.

"H-hi?" Tsuna gulped, noticing the cryptic smile from the guy.

"Good morning, Tsu-chan~" Byakuran chirped, munching on another marshmallow. "Imagine my surprise when I strolled through the neighborhood and I happened to find a 'Sawada' house."

 _You didn't even know my surname . . ._ Tsuna's mind supplied, Byakuran's creep-level multiplying by ten.

Nana was humming in the background. "Don't mind me~ just making breakfast and totally not eavesdropping." Tsuna wanted to run away and cry. His mom couldn't detect creepers!

"Do you need something?" Tsuna finally asked. He's afraid that if he let this go any longer, something horrible would happen to everyone involved, one way or another.

"I just want to watch over you, that's all," Byakuran continued to smile. "May I do that?"

"Did you have to come to my house?"

"I wouldn't be a very good watch when I'm not with you one hundred percent of the time."

Was that right? Did Tsuna hear that right? Did Tsuna's mind decipher that right? This guy, Byakuran, with the creep factor of more than one thousand (theoretically speaking), wanted to watch over him, _literally_ watch over him, one hundred percent of the time, _all_ the time?

"No." Tsuna answered.

"Awww," Byakuran pouted. "Why not?"

 _Because you're a creep. Because something horrible will happen to me. Because you're plain bad news._ "I can take care of myself."

"You know, Tsu-chan, you _always_ say that," Byakuran giggled, scarfing the last piece of marshmallow. "That's never stopped me though. I just have to be discreet. Oh, but that means I can't enter your house as a surprise anymore. And I can't hide clothes! Darn."

Byakuran's creep level multiplied by a thousand.

"See you around anyway, Tsu-chan." Byakuran turned to his mom. "Thanks for having me, Mama, and thank you for the marshmallows."

Nana looked a bit disappointed. "Won't you stay for breakfast?"

"It's okay. I'll come back here eventually when Tsu-chan accepts me." He smiled to both of them before he left the Sawada residence.

Tsuna looked at his mom. "I-I think I'll take a shower first. Around ten showers."

"Just don't be late, hmm, Tsu-kun? Breakfast will be ready in twenty."

Tsuna's head was reeling as he walked away from the kitchen. That was the first time he said it to Byakuran, _I can take care of myself,_ but the guy acted as if he'd already said it multiple times. _Always_ , the guy said. And if the guy was telling the truth about hiding clothes, then Tsuna knew who was the culprit when he missed his scarves and jackets last week.

He would need an additional fifty showers to wash away the icky feeling on his skin.

* * *

Uncle Kawahira approached him one day to talk about serious stuff. Specifically, work-related stuff. It made Tsuna nervous. Was he doing a horrible job?

"Nothing like that, Tsuna-kun," Uncle Kawahira assured him before he could voice out his worries. "I think it's time to expand the cake shop, don't you think?"

"What do you mean?"

Uncle Kawahira smiled. "Do you think there's room for improvement with our shop?"

Tsuna's eyebrows furrowed while deep in thought. _Room for improvement?_ The cakes were already delicious, no doubt about that. They're a cake shop so that should be the main focus of the shop, right? But it wouldn't be bad to have other pastries, maybe? Or better drinks to go along with their cakes? They had tables and chairs but most of their customers (that Tsuna could count in his hands . . .) had their cakes as take-out. Maybe it's a good idea to "advertise" dining in too?

But of course these were only his thoughts . . . it's not as if he could share it to Uncle Kawahira! That would be presumptuous!

However, Uncle Kawahira's smile told him otherwise. "Your face tells all, Tsuna-kun. You already have something in mind."

 _Caught again!_ "Um, I do have something . . ." _A lot of things, to be honest, but we should start one step at a time._

"I'm listening."

"I think it's a good idea to add a better selection of drinks. So far we only have generic coffee, some juices and soda. I don't know what we could add though."

Uncle Kawahira clapped his hands in a heartbeat, surprising Tsuna. "Excellent! I'm thinking about the same thing. I'll draft a new drinks menu and I'll let you know about it, okay Tsuna-kun?"

"Um, okay." In the first place, Tsuna didn't know why Uncle Kawahira was asking permission from _him_. He was just the cashier!

"Your opinion matters to me," Uncle Kawahira laughed before going back to the kitchen.

Tsuna blanched. He was convinced the older man was psychic.

* * *

"How old are you, Tsuna-sama?"

"N-nineteen."

"Height?"

"One hundred sixty-two centimeters."

"Weight?"

"Hayato, is this really necessary?"

"Of course, Tsuna-sama! I want to know more about the man I will protect for the rest of my life!"

Tsuna's eyes widened. "For the rest of your —

"And I need all this information right now! I only have two hours to spare before they find me!" Hayato placed the pen and notebook (which he was waving before) back on the table. "Weight, Tsuna-sama?"

"Fifty kilos . . ."

Hayato stared at his notebook, pushing up his glasses. "You know, Tsuna-sama, you're pretty small for a nineteen-year old."

"You only noticed that now?!"

Hayato laughed. "It's not important anyway! It makes you easier to hug!"

Tsuna almost choked on nothing. "H-hug?!"

"Yeah! Easier to carry too! I think if you'll permit me I will carry you to places rather than let you walk."

Tsuna quickly vanished the weird image that popped up in his head based on Hayato's description. "That's never gonna happen."

"Yes Tsuna-sama, you're very kind! But the offer stands," Hayato beamed wider and Tsuna had to wonder where Hayato was getting his endless supply of devotion. "Would you like a demonstration?"

Tsuna had to look away to hide his warm cheeks. "Let's just move on with your interview . . . I guess you also want to know where I live."

"I already know that one," Hayato muttered as he looked over his notes, tapping his pen on his lips.

Tsuna was afraid to ask. "H-how?"

"I followed you home once," he casually replied, flipping a page.

 _What the heck?!_ When the hell did that happen? More importantly, why didn't he feel Hayato following him home? Just the other day he felt people watching him as he left the house, but never on the way home! Was his intuition failing him now when he needed it the most? It was the only thing keeping him sane from the insanity of everything!

"AH!" Hayato's gasp brought him back to reality. "Here's an important one. Do you have a girlfriend and who?"

 _That's important information?_ "None," Tsuna answered anyway.

"Boyfriend?"

" _HAYATO_ —

The door slammed open, cutting off Tsuna. A blur of white and black passed through and not a second later a tonfa was lodged against Hayato's neck.

"What do you think you're doing, herbivore?" Hibari snarled at Hayato, who looked more offended rather than scared like most people did when they had a tonfa lodged at their neck.

"What do _you_ think you're doing, bastard?" Hayato growled back, grabbing the tonfa and pushing it away from his body. Hibari quickly found his balance as he stepped back, or else he would topple over from the force of Hayato's push.

Hibari held up his tonfas. "You're not a Namimori citizen," he reasoned as if that was enough explanation to attack people and began commencing said attack inside the freaking cake shop. Hayato dodged the attacks well, Tsuna noted, almost as if they're in sync — but this wasn't the time to be amazed!

"P-please stop fighting!" he pleaded to the two, more to Hibari since he's the one attacking in the first place. Hayato only dodged and held onto his glasses.

"Oi, didn't you hear Tsuna-sama?" Hayato retaliated with a punch that Hibari avoided. "Stop attacking!"

 _But you're now attacking too . . ._ Tsuna thought glumly.

If it wasn't bad enough, the chimes of the door rung and Tsuna's attention was brought to the newcomer. "The Great Lambo is here!"

"L-Lambo!" Tsuna panicked and pulled the younger boy away from the ongoing fight. "Don't get in their way!"

"Ahh, Tsuna-nii," Lambo sat on one of the chairs, "One Cloudy cupcake please."

Tsuna gave him an incredulous stare. "You're going to eat now while a fight is going on?"

"Ehh, I don't care about them," Lambo rested his head on his palm. "They're both idiots to fight in a cake shop. What if they hit the case? The delicious cakes will be smashed!"

Tsuna was vehemently ignoring the possible consequences of a fight happening inside the shop, but now that Lambo brought it up, he began to dread the bills for fixing broken furniture. It would be his responsibility and he didn't have that kind of money!

He shouldn't let this go any longer or else something _could_ get broken. Tsuna observed their fight a little closer, finding the exact time to interfere, when he noticed the both of them had successfully avoided hitting anything inside the shop . . . so far. That also included each other. He was both baffled and impressed at the same time.

 _There — an opening —_

His phone rung. Tsuna should really learn how to silent it on very crucial situations.

He fished it from his pocket, saw the caller ID and frowned a little. Takeshi had impeccable timing, didn't he?

"Takeshi," he answered before the other guy could even speak, "I'll call you later. There's a fight going on in the shop." Tsuna didn't know why he was a bit too calm when he was panicking seconds ago.

"Tsuna? You sound kind of different."

"I-it's just nerves . . . I guess."

"Ah! There we go!"

" _Yare yare,_ it's Sasagawa-sensei!" Tsuna heard Lambo whine from the background, and when he turned to look at the glass windows he saw Ryohei a few meters away, watching the insides of the cake shop and spotted Tsuna. Ryohei waved at him as the older man walked his way towards the shop.

Tsuna paled. Why now?

"Extremely good afternoon, Tsuna!" Ryohei boomed as he effectively slammed the door open. "You work in a cake shop?! Kyoko will be pleased — OH! A cake shop that hosts fights!"

Tsuna's eyes widened. "Hosts fights — _no,_ Ryohei, you got it wrong!"

"Tsuna? Who are you talking to?" Takeshi's calm voice came from the phone. Oh yeah, he was on a phone call with Takeshi!

"Takeshi —

"WHAT? _You_ know Tsuna-nii?" Lambo sounded scandalized as he pointed an accusatory finger at his sensei.

Ryohei roared with laughter. "If it's isn't my extremely WILD student Lambo!"

"I'm not wild!"

"Kufufufu~ it's lively in here."

Tsuna felt chills run up his spine as he heard that voice. He was pretty sure that was Mukuro, but where was he? He looked around, desperately trying to ignore the fight between Hayato and Hibari, the bickering between Lambo and Ryohei, and the call for attention from Takeshi. When a hand landed on his shoulder that was when he realized that Mukuro was standing _right behind him._ When the hell did he appear?!

Tsuna felt something within him flare up in response. Sure, he was ecstatic that the shop had lots of customers right now, but not in this sort of situation! And this crazy, absurd situation needed to be remedied _fast_. Without missing a beat he brushed off Mukuro's hand off his shoulder and moved to place himself between Hibari and Hayato, just what he was trying to accomplish earlier, and stepped in the _exact_ moment to push them off each other.

Slight miscalculation, Tsuna realized at the last moment, maybe because he was very distracted with everything happening around him. A tonfa on the left side of his head and a fist on the right side of his stomach were the last things he felt before everything went dark.

* * *

When Tsuna opened his eyes, it was still dark.

This time though, he was lying on something soft, a very familiar feeling of comfort and warmth. He felt around and his hand found a dresser, at the same spot where his was and — oh. This was his room.

Sitting up and letting his eyes adjust to dark, he looked around, as if expecting something out of the ordinary. There was nothing. He was alone.

 _What the heck happened?_

Was everything a bad dream since the very beginning? No crazy customers, no crazy situations and no crazy _everything_? Was it all back to normal and ordinary just like Tsuna wanted?

A light knock on the door interrupted his thoughts. Tsuna quickly muttered, "Come in."

"Oh, you're finally awake, Tsu-kun," his mom entered the room, flicking the light switch open. "I brought you some soup, like the doctor suggested."

 _Doctor?_

"What happened?" he grumbled, he found his voice a little too weak.

"You fainted," his mom supplied as she placed the food on the table. "But the doctor assured us you'll be fine. Just need lots of rest!"

"Thanks for the food," he smiled at his mom, feeling hungry at the smell.

Everything was back to normal. Tsuna couldn't be happier.

"By the way Tsu-kun," his mom stood at the doorway, hugging the food tray to herself. "While you're sleeping, a man with silver hair came and apologized a thousand times to me, saying he didn't deserve your kindness. When he left, a man with short black hair and black clothes passed by and stared at your room window then left too. Next, a boy with curly hair was crying a lot and I felt so bad for him, I took him inside for a bit and gave him grape juice. That calmed him down and when he did, he said he'll avenge you and left. A man with a pineapple hairstyle told me that you're most definitely very interesting and laughed while he left. Then Ryohei-kun came and offered to extremely fight for you, but then had to leave for his afternoon jog. Oh! Takeshi-kun called and asked about you. He said he'll be coming over during the weekends."

Tsuna fainted again.


	10. Arrival

_uploaded on July 18, 2015_

As always, thank you for reading this story and reaching this far. Chapter 10 is like a milestone or something!

I'm glad you guys like the weirdness and uniqueness of this AU. It's just too fun to mess with Tsuna, right?

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Arrival**

* * *

Tsuna felt better the next day so he decided to go to work, ignoring the minor protests from his mom.

"Are you sure you're okay now, Tsuna-kun? I don't want to overwork my only employee," Uncle Kawahira greeted him at the door of the shop, smiling slightly.

"I'm fine, Uncle Kawahira. Thanks for bringing me home and calling a doctor."

He heard all about it from his mom, Tsuna recalled. This man personally brought him home with a doctor in tow, much to the surprise of his mom. Unfortunately he also recalled a little detail about their talk this morning — _Are you sure he's old, Tsu-kun? He doesn't look like it! —_ his mom's inappropriate words echoed in his head. Well now that his mom mentioned it, Tsuna couldn't unsee it anymore . . . damn that woman.

Uncle Kawahira sighed in relief. "Thank goodness. Yesterday was a really lively day, huh?"

 _Too lively_ , Tsuna frowned.

"I do have something else to discuss with you," Uncle Kawahira fixed his glasses. "I thought about your suggestion with the drinks menu. What do you think goes well with cake, Tsuna-kun?"

"Um, coffee? Though I prefer tea."

"I agree with both. So I thought of improving our coffee and tea selection."

Tsuna beamed. "Great idea, Uncle Kawahira!"

"I'm glad you like it. Everything's taken care of."

 _Taken care of?_ "What happens now? Do we do a trial first?"

Uncle Kawahira's glasses reflected a glint of light. "I'm very confident with our barista's abilities, so a trial menu won't be necessary."

 _Barista?_ But they didn't have a barista!

"We do now," the man answered Tsuna's unvoiced question. "You'll meet him on Monday. I figured we also need to add staff if we're going to expand the menu. And with the amount of people yesterday, that certainly cemented this decision."

Tsuna rather thought yesterday was just one, big fluke. On a normal day, Tsuna could count in one hand the amount of customers that enter the shop, and even then not everyone buys something! They had zero sales yesterday for crying out loud. Everybody appeared to make trouble instead! Except maybe Lambo who ordered a cupcake, but Tsuna would never serve him anyway while a fight was going on.

And the barista? Tsuna didn't like what his insides were telling him.

* * *

Friday afternoon was uneventful. Tsuna expected something interesting, given how Shouichi and Spanner planned to meet up, but the both of them typed away on their laptops as if oblivious to the rest of the world. Shouichi wasn't kidding when he said they couldn't be distracted while in _work mode._ They focused on their work for two hours straight until closing time, save for the occassional discussion, eating of cake and drinking of tea, with passing goodbyes about meeting up again on a Tuesday.

Tsuna was on the way home when his phone received mail.

 _"Coming home for the weekend."_ It was from Takeshi, as expected.

 _"Can't wait. See you tomorrow, Takeshi!"_ Tsuna replied, grinning to himself. He couldn't believe it had been three weeks already. He missed his best friend, but the weird things happening occupied his thoughts most of the time. Now he was relatively free from it (the weekend — no work, no crazy customers) he could relax and hang out with Takeshi.

The reply was almost instantaneous. _"Me too. I think I'm too excited."_

 _"Huh? What do you mean?"_

Tsuna felt something move from behind him, but his intuition hummed with calmness and contentment. Tsuna let it move closer, trusting his instincts.

At the next second, arms snaked from behind, hugging his waist.

"Tsuna!" a cheerful voice greeted him. "Surprise!"

"Takeshi! You're a day early," Tsuna smiled, glancing over his shoulder to look at his best friend.

"Haha, what are you talking about? It's Friday evening. Just a few hours early!"

Tsuna raised his eyebrows. "Don't tell me you're planning to arrive on Saturday midnight?!"

"Aw, you got me. I can't waste any second." He placed his chin on top of Tsuna's messy mop of hair. "Why don't we try going home like this?"

Tsuna instantly flushed. "T-Takeshi! It looks silly! And besides, don't you have to greet your dad first?"

"He doesn't know I'm here, haha!"

Tsuna's eyes widened. "Then, you mean —

Tsuna felt Takeshi's arms tighten around his body. "Relax, Tsuna. He knows I'm arriving tomorrow but not tonight. By the way, can I sleep over?"

* * *

"Ara, Takeshi-kun!" Nana's overly enthusiastic greeting welcomed them as they entered the Sawada residence. Tsuna could already imagine his mom's crazy antics unfolding before him. He swore, as time passed, his mom got crazier by the day! Was it because of age?

"Good evening, Mama! Sorry for the sudden arrival," Takeshi smiled sheepishly at her as he rubbed the back back of his neck.

"Nonsense, Takeshi-kun, you know you're always welcome here. Have you had dinner yet?"

"Actually . . ."

Tsuna beamed. "Just in time too! Uncle Kawahira gave me another cake!" He held up the box.

Nana smiled. "Go on then. Eat your dinner first while I prepare the bath."

"Do you want to take a bath first, Takeshi?" Tsuna mumbled distractedly, placing the box on the dining table.

"Why don't you go together?" Nana suddenly tittered as she disappeared from the kitchen.

Tsuna hid his face. His very, very red and hot face. His mom knew no boundaries.

Takeshi chuckled beside him. "Yeah, why don't we? Just like when we were kids!"

Tsuna wanted to hide under the table. Takeshi knew no boundaries too.

* * *

Speaking of no boundaries . . . was it normal to lie down on the bed together while hugging?

"Don't want to sleep yet," Takeshi mumbled beside him, his face buried in the rowdy but fluffy brown hair.

Well, now that Tsuna thought hard about it, it _was_ normal to lie down on the bed together while hugging. At least, between Takeshi and him. He didn't know about other people but it was how they did it ever since, it was comfortable and surprisingly it didn't bother Tsuna much, so everybody won!

"What do you want to do?" Tsuna asked Takeshi's chest.

"A lot of things," Takeshi laughed while letting go of Tsuna, lying flat on his back. "But a lot of those things are not possible."

Tsuna laid on his back too (it was a good thing his bed was spacious enough) and glanced at Takeshi. "Impossible things?"

"Hopefully improbable," Takeshi chuckled.

Tsuna was confused. "But aren't impossible and improbable the same?"

" _Maa_ , I guess."

 _Takeshi's a little weird sometimes_ , Tsuna thought, and he decided to let the topic go. "So, anything you want to do that's within the realm of possibility?"

Takeshi grinned. "We could talk about how we can find Mochida's address in Tokyo so we can pay him a visit!"

Tsuna knew _that_ smile. It was one of those signature smiles by Yamamoto Takeshi which promised untold, unpleasant things. And the target would probably be Mochida if he was in the premises.

"Come on, Takeshi. Mochida was just being annoying, like his usual self. Besides, he's in Tokyo anyway! Far enough from Namimori."

"Next time, please tell me immediately and hold him off for at least an hour. I'd like to talk to him."

Tsuna rolled his eyes but he was holding back a smile. "Sure, like I believe you're only going to talk to him."

Takeshi turned to his side again and placed an arm over Tsuna. "Haha, you know me too much, Tsuna."

Tsuna turned to face him. "Of course I do! You're my best friend after all."

"Yeah."

* * *

Just before lunch, they decided to go to Takeshi's house so he could reveal his arrival to his dad.

"Pops! I'm home!" Takeshi announced as he slid the door open to Take Sushi. Tsuyoshi was positively beaming but was busy attending to the customers, so no time for hugs and all that. Instead, Takeshi turned to Tsuna. "Let's eat lunch here."

"Sure!" Tsuna would _never_ deny the sushi in Take Sushi. They had the best sushi in town, no doubt about that.

Tsuna found a table for them while Takeshi went around the counter to help out his dad with the sudden surge of customers. Tsuna looked around the restaurant, noting the full venue, when he noticed a group of suited men surrounding a stylish man with wavy, blond hair.

He looked familiar.

Tsuna remembered when their eyes met.

"Tsuna!" the man called out to him, earning curious glances from the other customers. Even Takeshi looked up from making sushi.

In only a few wide strides, the man was already in front of him, their faces only a few centimeters apart. Tsuna scrambled to get away as far as possible but the wall adjacent to their table stopped him.

"How's our cute cashier?" the man grinned and in an instant, Tsuna was glowing a bright red.

"Haha, do you know this guy, Tsuna?"

Tsuna was so flustered he didn't notice Takeshi appear in front of him, effectively setting himself up as a barrier between Tsuna and the older man. Takeshi's back was facing him so Tsuna was unable to see his face, but he could feel Takeshi was tense, and the sushi knife he was holding wasn't very comforting to anyone.

"A-ah," Tsuna answered before any misconceptions arose, "He's Dino-sa —

"Just Dino," the man quickly corrected, not deterred at all with Takeshi's wariness. "Please don't add _san_ , Tsuna! I feel old." He turned to Takeshi. "You're Tsuna's friend?"

"Best friend," Takeshi also corrected, his grip tightening its hold on the sushi knife.

"He's a customer from the cake shop," Tsuna mumbled as he scooted nearer Takeshi's back.

"I see! I remember now, the guy that gave you that card —

Tsuna pulled at Takeshi's shirt before he could say anything else. Okay, so Tsuna liked to share to Takeshi _everything_ that happened at work everyday. That didn't mean Takeshi had to say it out loud! Oh this was just embarrassing!

"That's the one," Dino answered for Tsuna, making him blush even redder as he hid behind Takeshi. "But Tsuna, you never did mail or call me. I was kind of expectant! And sad."

"I forgot?" Tsuna tried.

"Well, there's always next time!" he beamed.

Tsuna stared. All he could think of was, _that's a really warm and bright smile_. It was one of those things his intuition picked up on and told him it was safe, harmless and possibly trustworthy. What made it a bit more special was how fast _it_ made the conclusion with just one smile from this stranger. Surely that had to have some merit? Without further thought, he whispered to Takeshi, "I'm okay. Go on and help your dad."

Takeshi looked over his shoulder to raise his eyebrows at him. "Are you sure?"

"He's not Mochida," Tsuna smiled.

Tsuna saw Takeshi's form relax and upon giving a nod, he looked back at Dino (Tsuna didn't know what kind of face he made) and returned to the counter to help his dad. For some reason, Dino took that as a welcome and sat across Tsuna from the table, his bodyguards posted near. For some other reason, Tsuna didn't mind.

* * *

They met Ryohei sometime around afternoon on his daily afternoon jog. The meeting was . . . Tsuna didn't know how to describe it. He wouldn't say it was uncomfortable, nor awkward, since the two actually got along well. Some kind of camaraderie between two sportsmen or something like that. They hung out a lot during middle school even though Ryohei was a high school student.

So Tsuna couldn't describe what the weird feeling was.

Anyway, they were eating ice cream at the park. They sat on a bench with Ryohei on the right of Tsuna, and Takeshi on the left.

"Won't this ruin your meal plan or something?" Tsuna asked Ryohei who was eating his ice cream happily.

"Ice cream will _never_ ruin my diet plan!" Ryohei exclaimed as if Tsuna asked an absurd question.

"Isn't this kind of silly though?" Tsuna laughed, glancing this time to Takeshi. "Grown men eating ice cream."

"Ice cream is for _all_ ages, Tsuna," Takeshi had a serious look on his face that Tsuna didn't know if he said something bad. At least the ice cream girl from across the street, the one who sold them the ice cream, seemed to be content watching them eat, giggling and blushing.

In one big, final bite, Ryohei finished his ice cream along with the cone. "DONE!"

"Already?" They just bought the ice cream three minutes ago!

"You gotta learn how to eat extremely fast, Tsuna!" Ryohei boomed, jumping up from the bench. "More time to do other things!"

"Onii-chan's right," Takeshi grinned, his ice cream also gone. Tsuna wondered where he put it; Tsuna wasn't even halfway done with his. "What do you want to do next?"

"How about we jog?!" Ryohei suggested as he pumped his fists in the air.

"But I'm still eating my ice cream —

"Tsuna, sometimes you're extremely silly!"

"Wha —

"Eating while jogging is never a problem!" And in a split-second, Tsuna was being carried over Ryohei's shoulder like a sack of potatoes. It was a wonder his ice cream didn't fall off the cone as he held onto it for dear life. "Let's run, Tsuna!" And then Ryohei ran. With Tsuna on his shoulder.

"HIIEEEEE!"

And then Tsuna saw Ryohei look behind him, at Takeshi who was left behind, and _smirked_.

Takeshi ran after them.

"Is this some kind of new workout routine?!" Tsuna shouted over to Takeshi who was trailing after them.

"I don't know, but it seems fun!" Takeshi yelled back as he tried to increase his speed, but Ryohei was fast. When Takeshi sped up, he also sped up and the distance was consistent between their varying speeds. Not to mention this guy was carrying _him_ while running!

Tsuna could only eat his ice cream, already resigned to his fate to be hauled around until Ryohei got tired . . . which might be never.

* * *

The weekend was over in an instant. _Not enough time,_ Tsuna concluded. He did want to spend more time with Takeshi but it was now Sunday evening. The guy had to return to Kishiki.

When Tsuna went to deliver the weekly cake to the Varia CEO's estate, Takeshi tagged along with him despite Tsuna's misgivings. In the end, when they arrived at the mansion, it was uneventful. The Varia's weirdos — erm, the upper echelon — were away on a business trip. So they only dropped off the cake and left.

Takeshi didn't fail to voice out his disappointment in missing the interesting people while wearing his smile. Tsuna thought it was better that way.

The rest of day was spent hanging out at each other's homes, like how they usually did during their high school days.

But it was now Sunday evening and Takeshi had to go back to his dorm in Kishiki.

After they said their goodbyes, Takeshi boarded the train but not before shouting, "I'll miss you, Tsuna!"

Tsuna hid his face in his hands, trembling. Nevermind the weird stares from the people around him.

* * *

It was Monday.

Tsuna entered Kawahira's Baked Goodies, thirty minutes early like the usual, and saw a man wearing the shop's apron on top of his all-black outfit.

"Chaos."


	11. Research

_uploaded on July 25, 2015_

I'm not kidding when I say I was very, very surprised at everyone's reaction when Reborn arrived. I didn't realize a lot of you are excited to see him! (My average review count per chapter more than doubled for chapter 10, to give you some idea.) It's amazing!

I have a confession to make. I am a fan of Reborn. In fact, I'm a big fan of R27. But I shouldn't play favorites . . . I'm trying my best.

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Research**

* * *

Tsuna stood frozen at the shop's entrance.

The man gave him a look over before smirking, snapping Tsuna back to reality and flushing in embarrassment. Uncle Kawahira finally appeared to distract Tsuna from this strange, tall man.

"Tsuna-kun, good morning!" Uncle Kawahira smiled, stepping away from the kitchen doors. "I see you've finally met our newest staff member!"

"H-he — ?" Tsuna was finding it hard to form coherent sentences.

"Reborn," the man introduced himself, tilting his fedora. "Sawada Tsunayoshi."

"W-well, I — " _Darn,_ what the heck was wrong with him?! Why was he so flustered?

Uncle Kawahira laughed and Tsuna knew it was because of his demise again. "Yes, this is Tsuna-kun, our cashier. Tsuna-kun, this is Reborn, our barista."

That was when it finally clicked in Tsuna's head. They _were_ talking about improving their current menu and the conclusion was to increase their drinks selection. Uncle Kawahira said a barista was already hired, and it was on Monday . . . how could he forget about that? Now that things were clearer to him, he found himself less flustered, his warm face already cooling up.

"Aside from that," Uncle Kawahira caught his attention again, "It's a good idea to learn how to make coffee, right Tsuna-kun? Reborn could be your tutor."

"I guess so?" Nothing bad with learning new things, right? He could use some extra skills.

But Reborn's smirk told different things. It was as if Tsuna signed a contract with the devil when he agreed to be tutored in the art of making coffee.

* * *

No training yet.

In fact, no work for Reborn either. He proclaimed this week as the "Observation and Inspection Week" as the week where he would do nothing and observe the work environment. Uncle Kawahira agreed and approved, much to Tsuna's increasing amount of disbelief for everything around him.

 _Observe the work environment_ roughly translated to watching Tsuna tend the cash register, apparently.

But there were no customers. Tsuna was stuck with Reborn watching him do nothing.

For the past hour.

If one wanted to be pedantic, Tsuna didn't do _nothing_ ; he fiddled with his phone, stared outside the door while daydreaming about the Yakuza manga he kept tabs on, made notes to reply to his more complicated mails later, remembered and mailed Dino a "hello", and wondered a bit what kind of person Reborn was. But these actions were all unrelated to _work_.

So Tsuna was very distressed.

He sent another wary look at the man who seated himself on a chair at the work area behind the counter, sipping his freshly-brewed coffee. He was still watching, his eyes like a hawk and Tsuna could feel those onyx eyes on every move he made.

"Um," he began, finally turning around to face the guy. "R-Reborn, are you going to do _that_ for the whole week?"

The man sent him an indifferent stare. "Who knows," he muttered, taking another sip. "Just do what you usually do, _dame_ -Tsuna."

"W-where did you hear that from?!" It was a dreaded name that stuck around even until high school and thankfully didn't follow him when he graduated. Unless Reborn talked with any of the former Namimori High students . . .

Reborn smirked. "I like to do my research in advance." He placed down his cup of coffee with a subtle _clink_. "Sawada Tsunayoshi. Tsuna to some, _dame_ -Tsuna to most. Nineteen years old. Mother is a housewife. Father is a businessman in Italy —

"That's enough please," Tsuna choked, turning away.

Was it _normal_ to have that much information on somebody who's just going to be a co-worker in a freaking cake shop? Besides that, now that Tsuna thought about it properly, this man didn't look like a normal person nor a barista! A normal person shouldn't have an ominous aura that prickled Tsuna's skin! He felt it too much earlier today; he had always dismissed that sort of feeling when Uncle Kawahira was around since he had that feeling permanently on him.

Little did Tsuna know it was coming from _Reborn_.

Even the name "Reborn" wasn't normal!

Tsuna wanted to have a normal co-worker. That way he'd have someone to share his misery with about their weirder customers.

The new co-worker was weirder than the customers.

Before Tsuna could think of ways on how to cope, a spoon hit his head just enough to hurt. "Wha —

"I don't like being interrupted, _baka_ -Tsuna," Reborn tched at him, picking up his coffee again. _This guy is unbelievable,_ Tsuna stared in disbelief. He found himself doing that too often nowadays. "Where was I? Father is a businessman in Italy. Do you know what kind of business your father conducts, Tsuna?"

"I don't care," he grumbled, bitter to both the topic of his so-called father and the lingering pain at the back of his head. "I don't even know why _you_ care! I only met you one hour ago!"

Another spoon was thrown at his head. "You _should_ care. A good boss should know his line of business."

Tsuna could tear his hair out. "I'm not a boss! I don't need to care!"

"That loser complex is impressive. Well, Iemitsu is not in a particular hurry. I'll take my one week of observation."

Tsuna stiffened at the mention of his father's name but didn't pursue the topic any longer. He wanted to drop the subject completely, and asking Reborn how he knew his father on a first-name basis would prolong the topic. Instead, he turned away from Reborn — who returned to watching him a bit too intensely — and settled for sulking at the cash register.

* * *

Thirty minutes later, a non-customer appeared at the shop. Tsuna labelled him such for an appropriate reason; for all the times he appeared, he never once bought anything.

"Another one showed up," Hibari Kyouya uttered darkly, his slanted eyes focused on the man behind Tsuna. "A carnivore."

"Chaos," Reborn gave him a nod.

Tsuna glanced nervously between them. Hibari was prone to attack anything at the slightest provocation and Reborn emitted a very dangerous aura; Tsuna didn't think he could bear another fight inside the cake shop. He only had bits and pieces of what transpired after he fainted from stopping Hibari and Hayato, so he wasn't sure if anything was resolved. He didn't want to ask, either. He thought it was better if he forgot it even happened . . . that whole day was cursed from the start.

"Why is a carnivore loitering around a herbivore?" Hibari's eyes narrowed at Tsuna, but the question was obviously posed for Reborn.

Reborn replied evenly. "Tracking."

Tsuna had no idea what they're talking about.

Much to Tsuna's surprise, Hibari seemed to be content with the answer as he put away his tonfas — how he kept making those appear out of nowhere was beyond Tsuna's knowledge — and nodded back at Reborn. "I will permit this for the meantime."

Tsuna's jaw reached the floor.

One, Hibari yielded to Reborn.

Two, they had some kind of mutual understanding about carnivores.

Three, Hibari acted as if he had the right to give permission about whatever it was he was permitting.

Four —

Hibari glared at Reborn. "Though you should know this; Sawada Tsunayoshi is _my_ prey."

Four, Tsuna was Hibari's prey. Tsuna's face turned even whiter.

After making a broad proclamation, Hibari left the cake shop without a hitch, his coat billowing behind him. Tsuna could only stare at his back as their conversation replayed itself in his mind. It was a bit too strange for him; Hibari and Reborn were talking as if he wasn't in between them and that kind of annoyed him. If they were going to creep him out with their strange insight about carnivores, at least they should acknowledge him even a tiny bit.

Reborn didn't say anything else, disturbing Tsuna further. In the end, Tsuna was forced to recognize the awkward tension in the air while Reborn continued his "observation week" plan.

* * *

Tsuna's mind worked in a funny way.

He tended to forget about the sad or awful memories he had. What was the use of remembering things that only puts one in a negative mood? And, now that he was nineteen, he seemed to be forgetting a lot recently. Although the feelings associated with those faint memories were impossible to forget, the events themselves were passing blurs.

There _was_ one memory he could still remember.

He was six, maybe seven, when a few kids decided it would be fun to push useless-Tsuna around, simultaneously yanking away his umbrella while under the rain. It was funny to him now, really, how the scene played out like a cliched setting for a bullied kid. But it happened to him and it wasn't funny then.

If that wasn't enough, one of the bullies broke his umbrella so he would be forced to go to school without one.

So there he was, sitting on a puddle of muddy water, bawling his eyes out as the bullies surrounded him and laughed. He liked that umbrella. It was one of the rare, useful things his father had given him.

 _Useless-Tsuna_ , they taunted. _You're so stupid. How can you forget your umbrella? You really are no good._

 _Why am I so weak?_ He lamented silently in his head, but his cries grew louder.

Then he appeared.

Like a knight in shining armor, only he was wearing black that didn't shine, but the rain made it glisten anyway. His black hair was wet and clung to his face as he beat the bullies into submission. Tsuna saw, despite his blurry vision of tears and rain, how the bullies dropped around him one by one until none were left.

"I dislike crowding," the knight murmured, almost hushed due to the pitter-patter of the rain. He walked towards Tsuna and pointed a tonfa at his face. "Herbivores who don't hide from the rain are stupid."

"M-my umbrella broke," Tsuna reasoned lamely, finding the broken thing at the hands of one unconscious bully but then his brown eyes widened in panic, then immediately went back to the knight. "Thank you," he muttered before he forgot to thank him.

The knight didn't give a "you're welcome", but Tsuna was used to people not doing it anyway. No sense in giving attention to useless-Tsuna.

He finally stood up from the muddy water and tried to use his backpack as a make-shift cover. "I'm Tsuna." The tonfa was still pointed at his face even as he stood, but for some reason he didn't really feel afraid right now like he usually did.

Tsuna knew who the knight was. Hibari Kyouya, the feared third grader who hunted down law-breaking people and people who crowded. Just the sight of him incited fear in a lot of people, even in adults.

Hibari didn't need to introduce himself, Tsuna knew that too, as he flipped the tonfa away and walked out from the circle of unconscious bullies.

Tsuna was determined to thank him properly next time as he picked up his broken umbrella and went to school.

(Needless to say, he was scolded by his mom when the teacher called to have him sent home.

The next day, he learned where the Hibari residence was through his mom's neighborhood knowledge. He left a bird stuffed toy at their doorstep before running away as fast as he could. Tsuna didn't really know what to give Hibari, but he himself would love to receive a stuffed toy so he thought of giving that.)

* * *

Tsuna snapped back to reality.

And appropriately blanched at the flashback.

If Reborn noticed his growing horror, he didn't say anything about it.

* * *

Chrome appeared at the shop alone.

"Hi Chrome," Tsuna greeted her when she approached the counter. He noticed her eye flashed briefly to look at Reborn, but instantly went back to Tsuna. "Are you continuing your research?" He smiled, ignoring the previous action.

"Hello Tsuna-san," she greeted back as she clutched her bag tightly. "Mukuro-nii-sama requested another cake . . . he is most interested in the Misty Dream cake."

"Great choice," Tsuna grinned wider, already approaching their cake rack. "Just a slice?"

"Yes, please."

As Tsuna prepared the order, he watched Chrome at the corner of his eye. She was standing in front of the counter, hands gripping the strap of her bag and looking quite nervous. Ignoring the fact that she looked nervous most of the time, she looked _more_ nervous right now. Her visible eye also kept glancing back and forth at Reborn. The man was only looking outside the shop nonchalantly. He didn't seem to be paying attention to her.

Of course, Reborn seemed like the type of person who just knew everything that happened around him — very much unlike Tsuna. That thought didn't ease his mind.

"Tsuna-san, Mukuro-nii-sama has a request to ask," Chrome mentioned as they finished their transaction.

"Mmm? What is it?" Tsuna almost hesitated to ask as he's already expecting the request to be something creepy, coming from Mukuro. But the one approaching him was Chrome so he was willing to overlook . . . hey, maybe that was Mukuro's plan all along! That sneaky, weird bas —

"Sometime this week, he will visit you. He only wants to know if you will welcome him. The last time did not go so well . . ."

 _Yes, because last time he suddenly appeared out of nowhere while a fight is going on and everything is in chaos._

There was one detail that was disturbing Tsuna. "'Sometime this week'? Couldn't he specify when?"

Chrome bowed down. "I apologize, Tsuna-san. Mukuro-nii-sama has a very erratic schedule, so he does not know when he will be available . . ."

"Y-you don't have to apologize for that, Chrome!" She really didn't! "I'm just making sure."

"Thank you."

Tsuna sighed. It was a long and heavy sigh. He supposed he could agree . . . it was only a visit. Besides, at least he knew Mukuro would appear _sometime_ this week. At least he could be _somewhat_ prepared. "Okay. Yes."

"Thank you again, Tsuna-san!" Chrome's eye lit up, as if she's the one who had the request fulfilled. Tsuna admired her dedication to her older brother; the only other person he knew who was like that was Kyoko-chan. "I will let Mukuro-nii-sama know." Before Tsuna could say his goodbye, Chrome had already ran away at full speed.

"First sale of the day at four-thirty in the afternoon," was all Reborn said as Tsuna crouched down behind the counter to sob.

* * *

"Don't tell me you're following me home?!"

"I might be."

"I'm already off the clock! So the 'observation week' ended at closing time!"

"Who says you can dictate what my schedule will be?"

"B-b-but —

"Stuttering is a bad trait for a boss."

"You didn't have to hit me . . ."

"Mumbling is a bad trait for a boss."

"Reborn! I'm really starting to hate you."

"Conviction is a good trait for a boss."

Tsuna was already dreading what his mom had to say about Reborn.


	12. List

_uploaded on July 29, 2015_

It's kinda funny . . . a lot of you are worried about the Mafia (who wouldn't, amirite?). This story _is_ set in an AU so a lot of things can happen (or not happen). Ah, the power of an AU. Tsuna is still poor Tsuna no matter which AU he ends up in though, at least in my head.

So, in typical Reborn fashion: " _Saa na._ " Who knows.

Thanks for reading this crazy story! It gets crazier as the story goes by and I hope it keeps you entertained.

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **List**

* * *

A guy wearing the Namimori High uniform stepped into the shop. Tsuna was more or less nervous as it brought up some unpleasant, recent memories.

But the guy smiled at him, so it must be alright, right?

"Hello, Tsuna-nii!" the guy grinned wider.

"H-hi?" Tsuna mumbled, racking his head for clues on who the heck this person was. His light brown hair and calm features didn't bring anyone to mind.

"Oh! I forgot to introduce myself," he giggled sheepishly, stepping forward. "I'm Fuuta. I'm Lambo's friend."

Ah, a friend of Lambo. That instantly made this person a friend of Tsuna. "I'm Tsuna but I guess you already know my name."

Fuuta laughed again, taking out a notebook from his bag. "You're pretty famous in Namimori High."

Tsuna gulped, blushing a bit. "I am?" That couldn't be good.

Fuuta made a show of flipping open his notebook and searching through the pages, and as he found the page he's looking for, he dramatically pointed to it. "Yeah! Sawada Tsunayoshi. Number one most useless student in the history of Namimori. Number one most likely to be bullied. Number one with the lowest score in Math. Number two lowest in Science. Number one most likely to be hunted by Hibari Kyouya for being the most useless —

"I think I got it," Tsuna mumbled as he hid his face in his hands, flushing a bright red from embarrassment. So he left that kind of legacy in Namimori High? Reborn should be having the time of his life as he listened to Tsuna's list of "accomplishments".

"I'm not here to make fun of you, Tsuna-nii," Fuuta clarified, his notebook still open. "I really do want to meet you in person because of your rankings."

"I sincerely doubt it from the things you read to me . . ."

"Ah! But that's because I'm not yet done," he grinned, turning the notebook around and pointing to another part. "See?"

Tsuna reluctantly let go of his face and leaned closer to look at the rest of Fuuta's list. He read it out loud. "Number one in being the most clueless. Number one most popular student. Eh?!"

"I guess that explains the _most clueless_ part."

"Number one most adorable loser — what the heck?!"

Fuuta shrugged. "I only gathered the data from the questions people ask."

"Who even asked those questions?!"

Fuuta shrugged again. "A lot of people ask the most random things they want info on."

Tsuna grimaced. "I have to find that weirdo that asked 'who's the most adorable loser' and give him a punch or two."

"W-wait! I think Lambo asked that one."

Tsuna's face met his palm.

* * *

"Tsuna-nii, I just wanted to make sure!"

"You wanted to make sure _I'm_ the most adorable loser in Namimori?"

"In my defense, I think you're the only adorable loser in Namimori."

Tsuna's face met his palm again in attempt to hide his blushing cheeks.

* * *

"I'm telling you now, Fuuta," Lambo mumbled in between munching his cake, "If you have any motives towards Tsuna-nii, you have to go through me first."

"But I don't have any motives!" Fuuta was also eating through his cake. "Unless you count meeting him in person a motive."

Lambo slammed his fork on the table. "You know, Fuuta, I won't be surprised! Tsuna-nii is awesome! Just let me know ahead and the Great Lambo might go easy on you." He went back to eating his slice of cake. "But still, it won't be _that_ easy." He began gesturing to the expanse of the cake shop, waving his arms around. "Just remember I'm the one who told you about this place and everything in it is under my protection. That includes Tsuna-nii."

Another voice joined their conversation, a few tables away from their own. "Oi, Lambo, can you keep your voice down? We're working here."

Lambo turned to the voice's owner and made a face. "Shut up, Shouichi-nii! I have the right to say what I want however _loud_ I want!"

"He's right, we should be quieter," Fuuta smiled solemnly at Lambo. "They look like they're working on something important."

Lambo pouted in an exaggerated manner and poked his cake. "They're just doing their stupid university stuff. Fuuta, just because you're already in High School doesn't mean you can order me around. Because of that I'm retracting my words and you will now have to go through Lambo-sama like the others!"

Fuuta laughed. "If you're still onto that . . ."

"You can't fool me. I know you want something from Tsuna-nii."

"Yeah," Fuuta grinned. "I do want to get to know him. He's really interesting! And he's the number one most tolerant person when it comes to weird things."

"He can tolerate Lambo so I agree with that ranking."

"I told you to shut up, Shouichi!"

In the meantime, Tsuna was trying his best to blend with the wall and pretend he's not hearing anything.

Reborn was watching him with an unreadable look on his face, so he guessed he failed at the camouflage part.

When he turned away at Fuuta's announcement that he was also the number one most likely to attract weirdos, he guessed he failed at the "not hearing anything" part too.

* * *

"I'm very sorry about Lambo," Shouichi approached Tsuna as soon as the middle-schooler went home with the high-schooler.

"I don't mind," Tsuna laughed a little, scratching at his cheek. "I think it's quite admirable. Um, he's passionate with his belief? It's very cute."

"Don't let him hear you say that . . ."

"A-and you don't have to say sorry for him! It's not like you're his guardian or something."

"In any case," Shouichi procured a package out of nowhere and placed it on Tsuna's counter. "Somebody wants you to have this."

Tsuna didn't miss the abrupt change of topic, but he didn't press on. Instead, he focused on the gift, which was kind of a square thing wrapped in brown paper. He gingerly picked it up and found it to be light. "Somebody?"

"A close friend of mine," Shouichi answered impassively.

 _Very suspicious_ , Tsuna thought, and when his body guided his eyes towards the other guy on Shouichi's table, he noticed Shouichi twitch, but Shouichi tried his best to hide it. "Please thank that person for me," Tsuna smiled at him, then as an afterthought he added, "Can I open it now?"

"Err, umm, maybe later? When we're gone?" Shouichi rubbed the back of his head and was desperately trying to stop himself from turning around. He was twitching on his spot as if he didn't know where to put himself, and it looked too silly for Tsuna that it actually made him laugh. Shouichi was understandably embarrassed. "Eh? What's so funny?!" he demanded with a red face.

Tsuna let out another laugh. "You look silly."

"I'm not," Shouichi muttered timidly, his face getting redder as he turned away and returned to his table, gathering his things.

Spanner already finished cleaning up his stuff minutes ago and was watching the interaction between the two of them, a thoughtful look on his face. As if he reached a conclusion, he reached down in his bag and pulled out one of his wrench-shaped lollipops, then headed towards Tsuna. "On the house," he forced the lollipop on Tsuna's free hand. "It's strawberry."

"Thanks!" Although Tsuna was _never_ going to admit he loved sweets.

Shouichi had finished fixing his things when Tsuna saw him observing them. He walked up to the counter, and standing next to Spanner, he placed another package on top of the one he gave earlier, stacked on Tsuna's left hand. "The same guy wanted you to have this too."

"Thanks again?" Tsuna looked at the packages he's balancing on his left hand.

All of a sudden Spanner placed a rectangular box on Tsuna's right hand, just on top of the lollipop. "That one is from _me_. You don't have to use it, but I feel at ease knowing that I gave it to you _personally_ with my name on it."

"Thank you. I'll keep that in mind." _What's with all these boxes?_

He saw Shouichi give a look at Spanner, who returned the same look. Tsuna couldn't really point out what kind of expression it was. They were't glaring at each other or anything, it's more like they both had blank looks on their faces, but Tsuna knew there was _something_ there, he just didn't know what it was.

"We will be leaving now, Tsunayoshi," Shouichi turned to him. "See you soon."

Spanner nodded at him. "See you later, _cielo_."

As they left the shop, Tsuna could hear them mumbling to each other:

" _Italian?!_ "

"It's appropriate."

Now thoroughly confused, Tsuna tried to get Reborn's thoughts about the recent events, but the man had an impassive stare as he gazed back at Tsuna. His intuition wasn't picking up anything. How could Reborn watch everything without a reaction at all? That wasn't how normal human beings worked!

* * *

The first package was a literal box. The opening was in the middle, horizontally, and when opened it was empty. Tsuna tried to look for secret compartments but there were none. It was a box. Maybe for storing stuff?

Just for laughs, Tsuna placed the ring Basil gave him inside the box, and for some reason it felt right. So he decided to make it the ring's permanent residence when he wasn't wearing it.

The second package was another box, but it had something inside. A little lion plushie of all things. It also had a name tag on it. _Natsu_ , Tsuna read. He made it his phone charm which his phone was severely lacking.

The rectangular box from Spanner had contacts inside. Like the lion plushie, it had a note along with it.

 _This eye color suits you better._

Tsuna frowned at the orange lenses. Spanner did say he didn't have to use it, right? He placed the container at a safe spot on his study desk.

Satisfied, Tsuna nodded to himself and plopped down on his bed.

Then he sobbed into a pillow. He still hadn't forgotten that one ranking he saw in Fuuta's notebook.

 _Number one most lilkely to be targeted and captured._

What the heck did that mean? All the other rankings were very specific but that one was so vague. Captured by _what_ , exactly? Maybe a kidnapping like the Mafia?! Or abducted by aliens? Or getting sold off to slavery?!

Tsuna was so disturbed he didn't even question the accuracy and legitimacy of these rankings and how Fuuta had them in the first place.


	13. Number

_uploaded on August 03, 2015_

Thank you so much for reading this crazy story. You guys are great!

I have a question: are you guys interested in seeing "The Sky Charm"-related art? Maybe like character designs (since this is set in an AU, after all), or maybe some drawn scenes or events in the story. If there's going to be any, it's going to be in my tumblr. What do you think? Please let me know through PM or review!

More characters will be introduced eventually, and some chapters will focus on already-featured characters. Tsuna will never get enough torture.

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Number**

* * *

Reborn was missing.

Uncle Kawahira assured Tsuna that Reborn was "on the clock", but that term seemed inaccurate nowadays. Maybe Reborn was on his Observation and Inspection Week . . . somewhere else? But that would mean Reborn was playing hooky.

It wasn't as if he'd miss the man anyway. They'd only known each other for two days, and one of those days was spent with Reborn being impassive, as if he didn't exist in the same realm and had set himself to watch in silence. _Hey_ , now that Tsuna thought about it, maybe Reborn _was_ somewhere in the shop and hiding! The last day was spent in perfecting his camouflage!

After checking under the tables, Tsuna gave up.

* * *

Tsuna was bored.

The shop felt surprisingly empty. Reborn's dark and ominous presence probably added something to the atmosphere and Tsuna got used to it too easily. Now that the man was nowhere to be found, the air felt lacking in something, and Tsuna was bored.

He fiddled with the items in his pockets. His phone, some change, a card —

A card?

He pulled it out and saw it was the one the Varia CEO gave him. _Xanxus Vongola_ , right. He read the contents of the card; there was the company name, the company logo, the man's name, the man's phone number, the man's mail address —

Tsuna had called them once before to tell them the cake delivery schedule, but had never tried mailing them. His own mail address didn't give away his phone number.

The idea was too tempting.

Tsuna quickly hid the card to resist. But his resolve was weak.

In a matter of seconds he'd whipped out his phone, typed a fluffy email full of _emoji_ and sent it to Xanxus Vongola's address. He cackled like a madman. If the Varia found out it was him who sent the message, they'd probably hunt him down and kill him for it. He hoped they were too busy to track down a random person's mail when it was just a _hello_. What made it funny to Tsuna was the emoji of hearts and stars and other cute things.

Before he could contemplate replying to Dino's latest mail, he received a new mail notification.

Suddenly all the fun drained from Tsuna.

The reply was too fast. What if they found out?!

He reluctantly opened the message. Better brace himself now than let it get him later.

 _Hello. Who's this?_

 _Huh._ The reply was . . . surprisingly normal. But now Tsuna had to make something up. He didn't plan this far ahead! Maybe he shouldn't reply?

He should reply.

 _Oops, I think I have the wrong address. Sorry!_

There. It was a safe message and the conversation could be cut short as soon as possible. He sent it (not forgetting to add emojis. He couldn't resist) and was already halfway through his message to Dino when he received another mail notification. Didn't that man have a job to do?! But Tsuna supposed he couldn't think that when he himself was mailing people during work hours.

 _It's all right._ _Have a good day._

And that ended it.

Until he received a new mail notification a second later.

 _Actually, it's not all right._

Tsuna's eyes widened at the message. _They found out!_ He should've known the Varia had tracking devices or something ominous like that! What would he do if they suddenly showed up at the shop's doorstep? Maybe he should tell Uncle Kawahira in advance. Maybe he should call his mom now and let her know that he would love her forever even after death. Maybe he should also leave letters for all of his friends and customers . . . maybe give them calls as well . . .

Tsuna began drafting his will in his head when he realized the mail was longer. He read the rest of the message —

 _Want to know more. Let's talk?_

He exhaled. He didn't know how long he held his breath but he was pretty sure it took a lot of his power. He suddenly felt weak and vulnerable. Nobody found out anything which was supposed to be a good thing, but Tsuna didn't know if this was for the better or worse. Xanxus was, heaven forbid, striking up a normal people conversation. To a stranger, no less! And being civil about it!

Tsuna only realized the repercussions and he panicked. Xanxus was being _civil._ Maybe he's a good guy after all. He just hated Tsuna's guts, which would explain the aggressiveness towards him. That suddenly made perfect sense!

On another note, he kind of liked the idea of messing with Xanxus while pretending to be somebody else . . .

He gulped. First, he had to point out to Xanxus that he's a guy, so there'd be no misconceptions; second, he had to come up with a completely unrelated persona from his current self so they'd never suspect it was him.

 _Wait a minute_ — why the heck was he doing this, again?!

Getting Xanxus to talk was too appealing for him, apparently.

He blushed at the thought, but quickly dismissed it when he began typing up his reply.

That was how _Ten_ got Xanxus as his mail buddy.

* * *

 _Who were you trying to contact? That mail had more emojis than actual letters._

I was going to surprise my friend with my new phone. And you know what happened next.

 _Ah._ _Do you always type your mails full of emoji?_

Yeah. Do you find it annoying?

 _You asked me if I find it annoying... with a symbol of the moon. That doesn't even make any sense._

Well I find it cute.

 _To answer your question, no. I don't find it annoying. Just peculiar. And y_ _es. It is cute._

(Tsuna had to crouch down to hide himself from Chikusa. He was holding back his giggles so hard but he was pretty sure Chikusa heard him laugh anyway.)

* * *

"I'm waiting for Ken," Chikusa explained as he seated himself on one of the chairs, lounging as if he belonged there in the first place.

Tsuna had already stashed his phone back in his pocket as he managed to compose himself, finally facing their first customer of the day. He had his customer-service-face on. "Welcome. You're meeting here?"

"This is the train station."

Tsuna rubbed the back of his head and smiled. "Yeah, it is. Now that you mention it, I've been meaning to ask, you guys are from Kokuyo, right? But your cafe is here in Namimori?"

Chikusa gave him an impassive look. "It's better here."

Tsuna grinned. "Can't argue with that. Namimori is awesome."

He then noticed Chikusa looking past him, and when he turned around to see what it was he's looking at, he remembered the new coffee machines. _Oh._ Cafe Illusione specialized in coffee, right? Kawahira's Baked Goodies expanded the coffee selection and added premium ones, whatever the heck that meant. Did that mean they're direct competitors now?

"Special," Chikusa noted, obviously referring to the new machines.

Tsuna shrugged. "The machines are new, but I don't know if they're special."

The cafe door slammed open and at the next second, Ken was on Tsuna's face. "That girl told me she went here the other day," Ken breathed on his face, making him twitch. "I still don't see what's so special about you."

"U-umm," Tsuna gulped, noting the few centimeters worth of distance between them, "I would really appreciate it if you move a little bit further."

"Ken, that means you're too close."

"I know what it means, Kakipi!" But he didn't make any signs of moving away as he looked back at Tsuna. "Both that girl and Mukuro-sama are interested in _you_? Don't make me laugh!"

"Yeah, they have weird taste," Tsuna laughed, half-nervous and half-embarrassed. "I'm just a random cashier in a cake shop, so if you're expecting something great then I'm afraid I have to set your expectations right now."

"You're lame too!" Ken complained, and without preamble, both of his hands shot up and grabbed Tsuna at the sides of his head. "Is it because of this face?" he grumbled, tilting Tsuna's head from side to side.

"What about my face?" Last time Tsuna checked his face still looked normal, unlike this guy who had a disturbingly long gash on his.

"It's too soft for a guy?" Ken furrowed his eyebrows. "Wait, that came out wrong!"

Tsuna blushed in embarrassment anyway, shifting his eyes to the side. "Yeah, I get it. Too girly for a guy or something." He understood it too well; it was one of the most common things he got bullied with. And just like every other thing he got bullied with, he learned to live with it. Besides, he preferred to take after his mom rather than his absentee father.

Tsuna was surprised when Ken suddenly retracted his hands. He looked back at the guy and he found him staring with a startled look on his eyes, his face pale and mouth agape. His hands were trembling as he still held them up a fair distance away from Tsuna's head. _It's as if he's seen something so horrible,_ Tsuna pouted. He wasn't _that_ revolting, was he?

"I think Ken learned why Mukuro-sama is interested in you," Chikusa commented from afar as he watched his friend stay frozen.

"Shut the hell up Kakipi!" That unfroze Ken as he turned and stomped away from Tsuna and towards the exit.

Chikusa stood up from his seat and stopped by Tsuna's counter. "By the way, earlier in our conversation, I was not referring to your new coffee makers."

 _Huh?_

"I don't like misunderstanding . . ." Chikusa sighed while muttering, "So troublesome." He turned to the door. "Mukuro-sama also wanted to remind you about his visit."

And in a few seconds, they're both gone.

Tsuna stood there in bafflement. He had no idea what Chikusa was talking about. Or maybe he forgot already.

* * *

 _Not convinced?_

 _To convince you, I shall now start replying to you with an emoji or two._

(Tsuna had to supress another laugh when Xanxus messaged him with the grinning smiley emoji.)

Sorry, had work-related stuff to do. I'm convinced the first time you said it! BTW I approve the use of emoji.

 _You might change your mind._

(This wasn't good for his heart, Tsuna concluded, as he stared at the newest reply he received, filled with stars and hearts and very much like his very first message to Xanxus. It felt like he was stepping on really sensitive and private things but the opportunity was just too good to pass up. He couldn't stop.

Tsuna decided that he'd never, _ever_ reveal the truth as his life depended on it.)

* * *

When Tsuna returned from his lunch break, Uncle Kawahira (who always took over his cashiering whenever he was on break), welcomed him at the door. Which was very unusual.

"Uncle Kawahira, what's up?" Tsuna asked as the man blocked the entrance of the shop.

"Welcome back, Tsuna-kun," the man smiled, handing Tsuna . . . his stuff? "There's a minor complication in the kitchen that would take most of the day to clean up, so I'm afraid we have to close shop early. I hope you don't mind that I gathered your things for you."

"It's okay, it's just my clothes." But Tsuna wondered what could have possibly happened that would force the shop to close? "I can help you with cleaning up!" he offered, partly because of curiosity.

"Ah-ah, remember what we talked about, Tsuna-kun? The kitchen is all mine, as the service area is yours. I can take care of it just fine. You still have full day's pay for today if you're hesitant to leave early."

"I'm not really worried about that," he said all too quickly, and he shut up just as quick. Now that he thought about it, he never did once thought about his salary, did he? They had no money problems . . . it was one of the few things Iemitsu was doing right as a parent. But of course money was still money and anything extra would always be useful. "Thanks, Uncle Kawahira," he didn't forget to add.

But . . .

"What about Reborn?" Tsuna asked, wearing his backpack.

"I already let him know," Uncle Kawahira emphasized by holding up his phone.

Well, that settled that. Now he had a half-day all to himself.

Tsuna left before he was tempted to ask Uncle Kawahira for Reborn's number and address.

* * *

Tsuna realized that he walked from Kawahira's Baked Goodies to the convenience store while still in uniform. His clothes were in his bag, after all.

It wasn't a big deal, anyway, right?

He passed by the store for a quick trip as he held his mom's to-buy list. Maybe some snacks as well. He was still bitter about those marshmallows.

After gathering everything in the short list — plus some sweets and marshmallows — he went to the register to pay. Then he saw the cashier.

"I found you," Tsuna grinned, placing his basket on the counter.

"I wasn't hiding . . ." Enma muttered, but his lips had a small smile on them. As he scanned the items, he glanced at Tsuna's clothes and Tsuna noticed his eyes focus on the logo on his polo shirt. "Kawahira's Baked Goodies?"

"It's the cake shop I work for. I'm also a cashier," Tsuna explained, feeling a little awkward. For all the times he talked with Enma, he realized his workplace was never brought up. "It's at the train station. You've never really gone there, have you?"

Enma shook his head. "No reason to use the train."

Tsuna smiled wider. "You should visit me sometime! Maybe after school? I'll treat you to cake."

Enma suddenly focused on the items he was scanning, bowing down his head a little further. Tsuna could see how much he was trying to hide his face and his reddened cheeks. This guy was really shy, Tsuna had learned long ago.

"Oi Kozato, already flirting on the job?" a voice from behind the counter called out and Tsuna found a guy with a goatee and glasses. The guy's tone sounded like he was scolding Enma, but he had a smirk on and it only made Enma's blush worsen. He gave Enma a big pat on the back. "Great taste!"

 _That_ made Tsuna blush.

"Y-you got it wrong," Tsuna quickly explained, looking back and forth between Enma and the other guy. "Enma's my friend . . ."

"I'd like to be your _friend_ too," the man held out his hand as he stood behind Enma, effectively getting his hand right in front of Enma's face. "Katou Julie."

The way he said the word "friend" sent chills up on Tsuna's spine, but he ignored it with discipline. "Sawada Tsunayoshi," he took the guy's hand to return the gesture.

Before he left to do his share of work in the convenience store, _Julie_ gave Enma a pat on the head. "If this guy's not willing, remember you can always call me instead, Tsuna-chan," he winked at him, sending Tsuna a combination of creepiness and embarrassment that made his blush worsen like Enma's. Thankfully the guy left to attend to a cute girl at the other side of the shop.

"He's a creep. Ignore him," Enma whispered, bagging the groceries in a paper bag. He was silent during the whole ordeal, Tsuna realized.

"He's always like that?"

"Only to the cute ones."

Tsuna turned his head away. His face felt like it's going to explode from embarrassment.

"Anyway," Enma smiled shyly, completing their transaction, "I'll visit you next week. Your treat."

Tsuna smiled himself. He was still flustered but he was trying his best to suppress it. "Yeah, it's a promise." Now that he was here though . . . "I just remembered. I don't have you in my contacts yet."

Enma blushed again as he stared at something from behind Tsuna, and when Tsuna turned around, he found Julie giving Enma a thumbs up.

Tsuna hid his face against his palm as his other set of fingers methodically typed on the phone, saving the number Enma recited.


	14. Subtle

_uploaded on August 09, 2015_

As always, thank you so much for reading this nonsensical and silly story. I'm glad you all liked Xanxus and his little emoticons. I really think he's just a misunderstood person, you know?

Not much else to say here except for I'm still aiming to introduce characters even at Chapter 14 and onwards. Haha!

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Subtle**

* * *

Reborn was still missing when Thursday rolled around.

Not that it mattered anyway. What _did_ matter was the . . . _changes_ made inside the shop.

"Do you like it?" Uncle Kawahira gestured to the entirety of Kawahira's Baked Goodies, his ever-puzzling smile on his lips.

The shop looked more spacious now, as if there had been a renovation that expanded the shop physically. Tsuna knew that was not possible in one day, let alone constructing it; the shop was adjacent to other stores. Said shops were still open too, so it was not a matter of acquiring one that closed, then renovating it towards the shop expansion. The number of chairs and tables increased too, and even taking this into account, the shop _still_ looked spacious than before. Maybe it was the arrangement?

Tsuna also noted the additional display cases, the bigger work space behind the counters and the improved, fancy-looking kitchen door. Back then it was a simple door, now it looked like one of those fancy restaurant ones that swung.

Was this shop even turning in profits?

"C-can we afford this?" Tsuna gulped, his mouth agape as he stared at Uncle Kawahira.

"Oh heavens, yes. I saved up for this for a long time."

"But how did the shop expand?" Tsuna finally asked the mystery bugging him.

"What do you mean? I only added furniture."

 _Ah._ So it _was_ the arrangement. The power of interior decorating, it seemed. Maybe Uncle Kawahira afforded one. But the weird jars still displayed along with those strange pacifiers were dead giveaways that _no_ , no interior decorator. The shop looked the same outside with no noticeable changes in size, so the arrangement theory had merit.

Tsuna refused to think of anything else, as the other reasons all defied logic and common sense. He was desperate to hang onto the little amount of normalcy he had. So _yes,_ he _was_ going to accept the shop looking bigger because of the furniture arrangements.

"I'm preparing for the future," Uncle Kawahira explained as he began walking to the kitchen area. "We might get more customers as time passes."

"That's true." Tsuna honestly believed this shop could become successful just because of the cakes. They only needed that push, whatever that would be, and Tsuna concluded attracting as many customers as possible was the obvious way to go, right?

* * *

Tsuna stared at the pompadour. He knew this hairstyle too well.

He then glanced at the man's face. There was no mistaking it. _Kusakabe Tetsuya._ With Hibari Kyouya's notorious popularity in Namimori, this man's name was a close second as the notorious man's second-in-command, although he was a lot more calm and peaceful than his leader.

"Welcome!" Tsuna greeted him. A customer was a customer no matter what they did in their spare time.

"Ah. Sawada Tsunayoshi," Kusakabe muttered thoughtfully, as if he had a sudden epiphany on the spot. Tsuna was about to confirm his identity when Kusakabe looked at the cakes on display. "It might work," he mumbled again, more to himself, as he walked towards the case for a closer look.

"Anything you like?" Tsuna asked, a bit excited. They opened thirty minutes ago and it seemed he was going to have the first sale of the day this early!

"How long have you been working here, Sawada?" Kusakabe asked out of the blue.

It wasn't a secret anyway, so Tsuna decided to indulge him. He calculated it in his head. "About . . . a month ago?"

 _Holy crap._ Had it been a month ago?! Tsuna's mind reeled with the revelation. He didn't even notice. That also meant it had been a month since he planned to have a job so he could think over his choices for University. And he had never even once thought of school since he started working here.

 _Double holy crap._ He'd never get to study at this rate. He'd be stuck as Kawahira's Baked Goodies's cashier _forever_.

"I see," Kusakabe nodded, then pointed at one of the cakes, "Heavenly Sky. Whole."

As Tsuna prepared the cake, Kusakabe seated himself on one of the chairs and watched, his face contemplative. Tsuna didn't know what to say so he stayed quiet. After several long seconds of awkward silence with only Tsuna's motions for sounds, Kusakabe spoke up again. "Do you see Kyou-san around?"

Tsuna almost choked in air. "Erm," he began, unsure on what to answer. He _did_ see Hibari around, sometimes a bit too much. There were times during his break, especially when he ate his lunches outside, that he occasionally saw that unmistakable black coat waving from afar. At this point of time he'd gotten so used to it he would forget Hibari was even there.

Still, that information was probably something Kusakabe didn't want to hear.

"Sometimes," Tsuna finally supplied, which was somewhat true, though he was referring to the times Hibari showed up in the shop, not the times he'd be _outside_ the shop. Because that would be _almost everyday._

Kusakabe didn't need to hear that.

"I really appreciate your answer, Sawada."

"Are you going to eat the cake with the Committee?" Tsuna asked curiously as Kusakabe handed him the payment. The _Committee_ was the vigilante group Hibari started that kept Namimori in peaceful harmony or something like that.

Kusakabe gave him a rather earnest smile. "This is for Kyou-san."

 _But didn't Hibari say he doesn't like sweets?_

Kusakabe continued without any prompting from Tsuna. "I thought it might cheer him up. He's been sulking for the past weeks and really irritable. You don't happen to know what's causing it, do you?"

Tsuna was taken aback. Hibari was _sulking_? How could one even tell the "normal" Hibari from the "sulking" Hibari in the first place? "I-I don't know. I don't even talk to him that much. And he doesn't talk to me either. More like he glares at me all the time. He also attacks people randomly. He attacked _me._ And last week he —

"I understand. Indeed, Kyou-san could be troublesome sometimes."

Tsuna sighed. Hibari was always a hard topic to talk about, no matter the context. It was a good thing Kusakabe was a mild-mannered and understanding person to keep Hibari in check. Only this guy could say that Hibari could be difficult _sometimes_.

"One last thing before I leave, Sawada," Kusakabe spoke up again as he moved to pick up his cake, "Do you know anything about a 'little animal'?"

". . . That's me. Most of the time he calls me a herbivore though."

Yes. He was a "little animal", whatever the heck that meant.

Kusakabe nodded. "Suddenly, a lot of things made sense."

 _How could that make everything make sense?!_

"Thank you for being cooperative, Sawada," Kusakabe finally grabbed his cake and went for the door. Just before he left, he added, "Unfortunately, that also meant you're too trusting. But I guess that's a part of you that makes you, you."

How ever could he respond to that? It was a good thing he didn't have to when Kusakabe left the shop as soon as he said it.

He ruffled his hair in frustration. Rather than a weird customer this time around, it was a confusing one. Tsuna wondered when they would have a normal customer for once. Wasn't a cake shop an attractive thing for girls? He always assumed stores like this were more appealing for normal girls, at least based on the little research he did before he applied as a cashier. Kyoko, Hana and Haru always went off for cake trips back in middle school. They even had a special cake day every third Saturday of the month!

On second thought, was it normal to have special cake days?

Tsuna refused to think of a serious answer to that question. The implications involved would be too much for him and he absolutely _refused_ to think about it.

Instead, he resigned to sighing at his register. _Dealing with weirdos?_ This was his life now.

* * *

Eating his lunch at the park always relaxed Tsuna. It was a much-deserved break, he believed, plus it let him forget the strangeness of things, even for a short while.

Today wasn't one of those days.

The park was usually filled with kids, considering his lunchtime was around the afternoon. Couples loved to stroll the park, people liked to walk their pets. It was like a typical park and Tsuna preferred it that way.

What wasn't so typical today was that tall, dark man with tattoos on his cheek, crouching near the swings. His spiky hair only added to his dangerous aura. He was staring at nothing in particular and the adults were wary of him. Tsuna couldn't blame them, though.

What made the sight even stranger was the flock of kids surrounding him and glomping him.

"Mister Lancia! Mister Lancia!" the kids chanted as they skipped around him, holding each other's hands and giggling.

Tsuna stared at the _Cafe Illusione_ logo on Mister Lancia's uniform. The weirdness was following Tsuna, it seemed. He almost cried on his sandwich.

It also reminded him that Mukuro had not yet visited him, and the week was coming to a close. It only increased Tsuna's uneasiness.

The man stood up from crouching. Considering how everything played out for him for the past month, he was already expecting Mister Lancia to approach him and say or do something weird. Not that he felt special, but the fact this guy was part of that pineapple weirdo's staff, he wouldn't be surprised if something like that _did_ happen. Truth be told, he felt somewhat let down when the guy only walked off with a trail of kids following him. He was prepared! Unlike the other times when he'd be caught off-guard. So unfair!

Wait . . . did he just want something crazy and potentially bad to happen to him? He was really pushing the limits of his sanity.

He continued to stare as the man chastised the kids who wanted to follow him to the road. They all laughed but they all ran away too, going back to whatever they were doing before they started chasing after him. Then the man caught his eye. And the littlest of smirks appeared on his lips before he turned away, crossed the road and disappeared from sight.

Tsuna flushed. _What the heck was that?!_ So the guy _was_ aware Tsuna was watching him, and the guy knew exactly who he was. He just had a different approach to weird him out.

Sadly, it worked on him as he resumed eating his sandwich, face red in embarrassment.

* * *

The hunt was on.

At least, that was how it seemed to Tsuna when he saw the long, white hair from a distance on his way back to the train station. Then the long-haired man suddenly started _running_ towards him.

Naturally, Tsuna ran in response too and as soon as he entered the shop, he crouched down behind the counters as if that would save him from whatever that guy wanted to do to him.

"Whatever is the matter, Tsuna-kun?" Uncle Kawahira looked at him in surprise as he sat on the floor.

Tsuna blushed. "Err, there's a guy chasing me . . . but don't worry, I think he's gone." If the guy was running at the same speed he should've reached the shop minutes ago. Just to make sure, he stood up and walked to the door, taking a peek outside.

Tsuna wished he didn't.

The guy was unable to follow him inside the shop because another guy stopped him.

Several meters away from Kawahira's Baked Goodies were two guys duking it out involving tonfas and a meter stick, and the fight was too fast to follow so Tsuna didn't understand who was winning. People were avoiding them too; Namimori citizens knew better than to crowd and watch Hibari Kyouya fight.

Tsuna silently closed the door and walked back to the register.

Uncle Kawahira raised both of his eyebrows. "What happened?"

"He's gone."

"Really?"

"Gone."

"If you say so, Tsuna-kun! Well then, I better get back to the kitchen!" With that, Uncle Kawahira patted him on the head and went back inside.

Tsuna tried his best to forget the undeniable bloodthirst he felt from those two, especially from the long-haired man. As far as he knew, normal businessmen weren't supposed to have bloodthirst and extreme combat prowess. But yeah, he learned a long time ago the Varia were far from normal.

"VOOOOOIIII! Leave me alone, trash!"

"For disturbing the peace, I will bite you to death."

Tsuna sighed as he heard their voices go further and further away.

* * *

Tsuna swore he saw a flash of long, white hair when he rounded the street corner. He opted to ignore it for the meantime. If something, or someone, attacked him, he trusted his intuition to provide him the help he needed to avoid the attack.

* * *

While he ate dinner with his mom, he saw a meter stick poking out from one of the dining room windows. Tsuna looked away and tried to forget about it.

* * *

The last of Tsuna's composure vanished into thin air when he heard something tap the window of his bathroom, and just as then he saw the familiar white hair disappearing from view. Tsuna's tears mixed with the water while he dipped himself deeper into the bath.

Not safe even in his own house.

* * *

When Tsuna went to bed that night, he didn't see the white hair or the meter stick again.

He did see the shadow of a billowing coat though.

 _Hibari won_ , he concluded in his head as he drifted off to sleep.


	15. Principles

_uploaded on August 14, 2015_

Thanks for the support for Hibari! But I think _he_ thinks he doesn't need it. He knows Tsuna is his. Or something like that.

Lancia is daddy-material, isn't he? He's great with kids! For some reason, kids are stuck like magnets to him. He needs more love.

As always, thank you so much for reading this story. Even though the story is really so weird now!

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Principles**

* * *

It was now Friday and Reborn was still missing.

 _Maybe he quit,_ Tsuna mused, as he stared at the pacifiers lined up on the wall. Maybe the place was too strange for him and he left.

Oh well. He didn't care. Not at all.

Nope.

He looked around the shop in wonder. It had been a day, but he was still not used to the expanse of the shop. It was . . . _really big_. If he failed to recognize that yesterday, he certainly recognized it now. The area was so big there was enough space to roll around the floor, even though there were tables and chairs placed neatly. It was very impressive.

"Tsuna-sama . . . what are you doing?"

Tsuna immediately sat up from lying down. "Um," he coughed, face growing brighter by the second, "I've been too complacent," he mumbled as he looked away. He seriously believed no one would enter the shop within the first few minutes of opening — just like how it usually was! Why now?!

Hayato held out his hand. "Tsuna-sama?"

Tsuna could feel his face getting warmer as he completely turned his whole body away from Hayato. "I was testing a theory," he answered the wall.

From the corner of his eye he saw Hayato crouch down beside him. "I'm amazed with your pursue for knowledge, Tsuna-sama! Please tell me the theory! I would love to help you!"

He had already sunk this deep, Tsuna thought in defeat. He hid his face in his hands. "I thought there's enough space to roll around on the floor."

There was silence.

Tsuna let go of his face to take a look at Hayato. The guy had a serious expression that it surprised Tsuna. "Then? Was the theory correct?"

"Yes," Tsuna replied reluctantly.

"Of course _you'll_ prove your theory right on the first try," Hayato grinned. "You're amazing like that, Tsuna-sama!"

 _Only Hayato will think it's amazing to roll on the floor,_ Tsuna hid his face in his hands again. Thankfully nobody else saw him.

* * *

"I came here to apologize, Tsuna-sama," Hayato knelt on the floor in front of the counter. "I would come sooner, but this is my first free time this week!"

"Hayato, please stand up . . ."

"It was truly out of line for me to punch you!" Hayato bowed low to the ground, completely ignoring Tsuna's protest, "I honestly didn't mean it! But I still punched you and for that I am willing to be punished! Please accept my apologies, Tsuna-sama!"

Tsuna sighed, resting his chin on his palm. "If I accept your apology, will you stop kneeling and bowing?"

"NO! I need to be punished too!"

 _A masochist,_ Tsuna concluded in his head, as he walked around his register to stand directly in front of Hayato. He then crouched down and placed a hand on Hayato's head. "I forgive you, Hayato." He didn't even have any grudges. To be honest he had already forgotten what happened last week and it was an accident, too! Not to mention this guy was very sincere with his apology, it would be _wrong_ to deny him his forgiveness. But to punish him too?

Using the hand on Hayato's head, he rolled it into a fist and knocked lightly. "Punishment delivered."

Hayato's head shot up. "Thank you so much for your kindness!" He was smiling so wide and — were those _sparkles_ at his eyes? "I am so over the moon right now Tsuna-sama! This means so much to me I could cry in happiness!" Tsuna thought he _was_ on the verge of crying. "I am just so happy — may I hug you?"

"I — what?!"

"I understand if you don't want to! I just want to let you know how happy I am. It's been bothering me the whole week and I'm glad it's off my chest."

Tsuna looked away in embarrassment. How could someone deny his request after hearing that revelation? He nodded in response.

Hayato didn't waste any second as he lunged forward and wrapped his arms around Tsuna. "Thank you! I can finally live again." They were now stuck on the floor as Tsuna had his back at the counter while Hayato was hugging the life out of him.

"You should have called or mailed me," Tsuna managed to choke out.

"It's not the same! Apologies should be done in person!"

That much was true for Tsuna too as he silently agreed with him.

Hayato finally let go and settled for gazing at Tsuna's eyes. "I am so lucky to have met you, Tsuna-sama."

Tsuna's face lit up. That sentence wasn't meant to be used _that_ way! It sounded oddly like a confession and it was very, very confusing. Tsuna didn't like how it made his heart clench for a second. Hayato's piercing stare didn't help either.

Hayato continued to stare and Tsuna continued to blush until the sound of a phone ringing interrupted them.

"Shit," Hayato cursed as he took out his phone to look at the screen. "I'm discovered."

"Discovered?"

"They found out I'm not in my apartment. I actually have a lecture in thirty minutes."

Tsuna's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Lecture? Aren't you the same age as me?"

"Yes, Tsuna-sama," he nodded as he silenced his phone and stored it back in his pocket. "I also have a degree in Music Education. Part of my training."

Tsuna stared with his mouth agape. "B-but . . . same age . . ."

Hayato smiled at him. "I finished college a bit early."

 _A bit early i_ _s putting it mildly!_ Tsuna was now clutching his chest or else his heart might jump out any second.

"I do lectures sometimes at Kishiki U," Hayato laughed shyly as if that was something to be embarrassed about. "So the cake shop's location at the train station is really convenient! If only my schedule will allow it I'll visit you everyday. Every hour. Maybe stay here forever —

"Thank you Hayato." Now Tsuna was really, _really_ embarrassed! The brief thought that Hayato somewhat reminded him of Takeshi brought some unpleasant connotations too. "You don't have to visit so often. I'm always available through phone calls or mails."

"It's just not the same," Hayato mumbled dejectedly. "One of these days, I promise I'll free up my schedule so I can take you on a trip."

"T-that's a bit too much!" Tsuna panicked.

"Nothing's too much for you, Tsuna-sama."

He felt like he was going to have a heart attack. Tsuna bowed low to hide the now permanent blush on his cheeks, at least, whenever Hayato was around.

"They just keep calling and calling," the guy grumbled and then, with a look of resignation on his face, he smiled bitterly. "I have to go."

Tsuna laughed a little at that; he recalled Hayato's first visit when he said the exact same line and he also —

Hayato leaned forward and kissed him on the forehead.

— _kissed him on the forehead._

And, much like before, Hayato left in a heartbeat without as much another glance at Tsuna.

Tsuna would never, ever understand how the mind of a genius worked. How did he find it appropriate to ask permission for a hug, but then takes a kiss whenever he wanted to?! It was maddening!

As Tsuna calmed his nervous and frantic heart, it was only then he realized they had the whole exchange while slumped on the floor. He should be more aware of his surroundings, shouldn't he?

* * *

It was worrying Tsuna.

It was indeed Friday already and Mukuro had yet to show up. The week was ending, Tsuna concluded, and he doubted the man was a liar. He was a creep, he said the strangest things, but Tsuna thought he was most probably a man of his word. So when he said, through Chrome, that he would visit this week, he should be visiting very, very soon.

It was worrying Tsuna too much.

When he went on his lunch break, he decided to head to Cafe Illusione to demand an explanation from the man himself.

Of all the people in Namimori, he saw _Fran_ behind the counter, complete with the cafe's uniform and his strange hat (it was an apple-shaped one this time). Wasn't he one of the Varia?

"I work here too," Fran explained as Tsuna stared at him in surprise, no doubt already having read what Tsuna was thinking about.

"Oh c'mon!" A different voice interrupted them and Tsuna turned to look at a girl with short, reddish hair. "I didn't believe Ken when he said Mukuro-sama's prospect was lame because he's stupid like that. Kakipi made no comment about you, and Mukuro-sama's annoying sister wasn't any better. But to see you in person? HAH! That idiot can be right sometimes!"

"That's not a nice thing to say, senpai," Fran pointed out.

"Well?" The girl ignored him as she stalked forward and jabbed Tsuna's chest with her finger. "What's so great about you? Tell me about it. Are you rich?"

Tsuna didn't really know how to answer that. Why did it matter if he was rich? It didn't matter to him at all, but if this girl wanted to know then he'd answer her through the honest route. "My dad is a businessman in Italy, if you're interested in that." He didn't like his dad, but he was at least thankful they lived a comfortable life because of his business.

In a split-second the girl was all smiles. "I'm sold!"

"You're such a gold digger. That's a really ugly trait for an ugly girl," Fran muttered.

"Shut the hell up you freakish brat." She turned to Tsuna. "I'm M.M."

Fran spoke up again. "What are you doing here, Fluffy-kun? Are you looking for Master?"

 _Master?_ Was he talking about Mukuro? And _Fluffy-kun_ , really?! "Um, yeah, I'm looking for Mukuro."

It was M.M. who answered him. "Bad timing. He's on an errand with stupid Ken and Kakipi. Won't be back till later."

Bad timing indeed. Tsuna sighed. He only had thirty minutes left for his lunch break so he had no time to wait around for that elusive man, but he might as well eat here instead. He looked at their menu and mentally picked out a simple bagel sandwich.

"You can spend your time with me instead," M.M. continued as she batted her eyelashes at him. "As long as you pay for everything!"

"Eww," Fran made fake gagging sounds and M.M. started cursing him to oblivion.

"Thanks for the offer but I'm just going to grab something to eat," Tsuna found it best to interfere now, even though Fran looked unaffected from M.M.'s insults. Now that Tsuna thought about it, nothing seemed to phase Fran at all.

M.M. smiled back at him. "Oh, well. You know where to find me!"

"At the dumpster?"

"I will kill you later," the girl glared at Fran.

Tsuna finally ordered his sandwich and drink while Fran rang him up and in his opinion, it was a strange sight to see Fran acting normal for once. M.M. gave him an exaggerated blown kiss and went to the kitchen, presumably to make his order or something. "It's just the two of you then?" He looked around and saw they had a fair amount of normal people, err, customers, drinking their coffee or eating pastries. Tsuna couldn't help but feel a little pang of envy.

"Unfortunately," Fran sighed dramatically as he handed Tsuna his change. "Ah, there's another one, Lancia-senpai, but he's on his break."

"But aren't you with the Varia?" Tsuna finally asked.

"On the contrary. I'm with Master but the Varia execs like to poach me. I'm an excellent accountant."

Why did he keep calling Mukuro _master_? And the Varia didn't have their own accountant that they had to _poach_ somebody? This was too confusing for Tsuna!

"Don't think about it too much, Fluffy-kun. It might hurt your head."

It already kind of hurt his head, Tsuna thought in regret.

"By the way, now that you're here . . ." Fran seemed to make a motion of urging Tsuna to move closer, and so he did as he leaned forward the counter. "I bet you don't know why Master wants you." He poked Tsuna at the forehead. "If you're not aware, you're very, very cute and fluffy and Master likes cute and fluffy things."

Tsuna's hands shot up to his forehead and he lowered his head in an attempt to hide his blushing his face. He didn't have to say it like that! He didn't know why these people found him _cute_ in the first place when he was largely ignored or ridiculed during his school days. Weird people had different tastes, maybe!

"Ah, but he also has certain standards so it's not only because you're cute and fluffy," Fran continued. "You met those standards, whatever those are. And it's good for you to know you're cute and fluffy because from the look on your face, you really don't know."

"If you keep repeating 'cute and fluffy', it will start to lose its meaning," Tsuna pouted. He still refused to raise his head.

"Annoying brat," M.M.'s voice sounded from behind Tsuna, "You know Mukuro-sama's prospects are off-limits, no matter how cute or rich they are!"

"Says the one who offered him a date," Fran deadpanned.

"I didn't offer _him_ a date, I offered to let him date _me_! There's a difference!"

"It doesn't matter anyway. Fluffy-kun will continue to be cute and fluffy on his own. A lot of people like cute and fluffy things. You don't stand a chance."

"Like I said! Mukuro-sama's prospects are off-limits!"

"Umm, guys . . . I need my sandwich," Tsuna interrupted them.

M.M. had his order ready and had it out on a tray. "Here's your sandwich and drink!"

Tsuna looked at it and glanced at both M.M. and Fran. "On second thought, I'll have it to go." He'd lose his sanity if he stayed here any longer.

"Call me!" M.M. shouted after him when he left Cafe Illusione with his food.

Tsuna's worries only intensified.

* * *

So. _So so so so_.

Tsuna gulped.

Uncle Kawahira said it arrived when he was on lunch break. Uncle Kawahira said a man wearing a suit left it at the shop while making sure _Tsunayoshi Sawada works here, correct?_ Uncle Kawahira said it was funny, because he found Tsuna's demise funny. Well, he didn't actually _say_ the last part but Tsuna knew that was true anyway when the man laughed.

Tsuna stared at the bouquet of flowers on the register.

"Ah, irises," Uncle Kawahira chuckled, gazing at the white things wrapped in colorful paper. "Are you familiar with _hanakotoba,_ Tsuna-kun?"

"Ehh . . . I know irises are kind of important." He sucked at these kind of cultural things. Irises were a prominent part of Japanese art, at least he knew that much.

"Irises encompass the world, Tsuna-kun," Uncle Kawahira smiled. "Quite literally it means the _rainbow_. A symbol of good news. It can mean a lot of things to different people and this one," he touched one of the petals gingerly, "With its white petals, means purity and friendship."

"Oh." Tsuna was awed.

"You deserve it," Uncle Kawahira grinned.

Tsuna quickly got over his shock to get down to business. "Can we display it here?"

"Certainly. I believe I have a vase somewhere. You're not taking it home?"

Tsuna smiled shyly. "The flowers suit the shop better." Not to mention his mom would ask a ton of questions.

Uncle Kawahira nodded. "Let me find that vase then." He disappeared into the inner parts of the shop.

Tsuna stared again at the bunch of flowers atop the register. He kind of had an idea on who sent these flowers, thanks to the strange warmth inside of him, but he was still dumbstruck with the fact that _somebody sent him flowers_. Even though it was just a sign of friendship, it still meant it had a very intimate meaning from the person who sent it in the first place and that alone was enough to make Tsuna embarrassed. Heck, the guy wasn't even here!

He stepped closer and looked at the card placed neatly in the bouquet. _Happy weekend, Tsuna! Yours, Dino._

Tsuna laughed a little. What kind of person sends flowers for wishing a happy weekend?

* * *

Tsuna was closing his register for the night when the door was suddenly kicked open.

"HIIIIIIE —

"Observation and Inspection Week is over," Reborn announced.

"You almost gave me a heart attack!" Tsuna clutched his wildly-beating chest.

"We can proceed with training you," Reborn ignored what he said and stalked forward inside, grabbed one of the overturned chairs, righted it up and sat on it.

Tsuna gave him a displeased glare as he continued to close the register. "I'm off the clock."

"That you are. Great observation."

Tsuna sighed. "Did you just come here to annoy me?"

"We will start on Monday," Reborn continued his announcement, once again ignoring what Tsuna said. "We will go over some rules before the actual training."

Tsuna gave him a pointed look. "I'm glad I won't have to deal with you in the weekend." His weekends were his only reprieve from this crazy, abnormal life. Even though he was expecting Reborn to have quit for good, just in case he didn't, Tsuna was also expecting him to go through with his demented concept of _training_ even on the weekend. If that ever happened, Tsuna would have none of it, he'd make sure of that.

Reborn returned his look. "I'm not."

Tsuna stared at him. Reborn didn't clarify his words. Instead he pulled up his sleeve to check the time, then stood up while muttering, "Stupid rules," before exiting the shop.

He left the chair, Tsuna noticed. Sighing again, he went over to the chair and turned it upside down and leant it on a table.

Reborn really had that kind of aura around him, Tsuna mused. The atmosphere felt heavy all of a sudden even though the man had already left.

The feeling of worry and dread worsened.


	16. Flowers

_uploaded on August 19, 2015_

Thank you to everyone who are still reading. I really appreciate it! Not much else to say except for "I hope you like this chapter".

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Flowers**

* * *

When Tsuna went home prepared for the weekend, he didn't feel good. His mind kept reminding him that _Mukuro hadn't visited yet — the week's not over — that meant Saturday._ That was an easy conclusion to come to. He didn't even feel like going to sleep as he dreaded the start of Saturday. It was a good thing he convinced Takeshi not to visit every week or else who knows what would happen? A meeting between Takeshi and Mukuro didn't seem to be the best idea.

In the end, Tsuna's body yielded and he fell asleep as soon as his body touched his bed.

* * *

"Tsu-kun?"

His body shook.

"Wake up, Tsu-kun. You have a visitor!"

Tsuna groaned inwardly. First thing in the morning . . . seriously?!

He reluctantly opened his eyes to find his mom looming over him with a wide grin on her face.

"You're really popular, Tsu-kun," she giggled, pulling him up. "It's one of your classmates from high school!"

That woke him up completely. _Classmates?_ The only real friends he had in high school were Takeshi — he forced him not to go this week — Haru — migrated to another country — Hana — moved to Tokyo to study. There wasn't anybody else! Unless his mom mistook Kyoko or Ryohei as his classmates too. Tsuna wouldn't be surprised if somebody thought to make up a lie and say they were a classmate of his.

Now that he thought about it, maybe it _was_ Mukuro, saying he was a classmate . . .

Tsuna clutched his head in defeat. His mom continued giggling at him and said something about the guy being cute.

 _Everybody's cute to you_ , he thought bitterly at his mom.

Time to start his potentially weird weekend. He sighed.

* * *

"H-Hello."

Gut intuition correct for the thousandth time. It wasn't a former classmate. But it _was_ a former Namimori High student.

 _Hibari Kyouya._

Tsuna didn't even think this guy was capable of telling a lie to get inside their house or to have his mom accomodate him. More importantly . . .

Why did he follow Hibari to the park?! And he even dressed up! Tsuna stared down disbelievingly at his clothes. His body moved on its own; one moment he was dumbstruck at seeing the infamous vigilante in their kitchen, and at the next second he was already dressed to go out. What the hell was happening?!

"Hibari-san?" Tsuna tried to call the other guy's attention as they stood in the middle of the mostly unoccupied park. Hibari was standing there with his arms crossed, staring at somewhere far away and appeared to be contemplating something. In all honesty, Tsuna wanted to return home to avoid all this strangeness, possibly go back to sleep for the rest of the day just so he wouldn't have to deal with anything at all.

Hibari turned to him. "Tetsu said you like parks."

 _Tetsu?_ Kusakabe Tetsuya? Tsuna didn't remember telling him about that, but it _was_ true, he liked the park.

Tsuna tilted his head. "Yes?"

Hibari looked away. "Tetsu said you like sandwiches."

Tsuna smiled a little. "It's not that I like sandwiches, it's just that it's easy to eat during lunchtime."

That made Hibari twitch and freeze.

"B-but I like well-made sandwiches of course! Katsu, tamago, yakisoba," Tsuna didn't even know why he was trying to justify his answer.

That sort of _unfroze_ Hibari and he was back to looking calm. Wait, he didn't look calm before? Tsuna was surprised with himself; could he even read Hibari that way? Maybe that was just his sleepiness thinking. _Right._

Without saying anything else, Hibari stalked forward, forcing Tsuna to follow after him. Now that they were here, he might as well see what this guy was up to before he calls it quits and try to escape.

They reached the area where the park boasted of _sakura_ trees. _Huh_. The trees were in bloom? Was it even spring? Tsuna wasn't sure about anything anymore. He couldn't even think straight! Maybe he really needed to go back to sleep. His mind was flooded with questions today and confusion wasn't something he liked to experience.

Tsuna looked around and found there was a blanket placed neatly under the biggest tree in the area. There was a picnic basket too.

 _Oh._

OH!

Tsuna's eyes widened.

 _A picnic?!_

Tsuna turned to the guy beside him but he found him focused on the little picnic area. Then, as if finding the arrangements acceptable, the guy walked towards it and sat down _g_ _racefully_ , Tsuna's mind added, but everything that guy did was graceful anyway, in a morbid, nefarious kind of way.

Hibari stared at him.

Tsuna fidgeted.

Hibari stared.

 _He's waiting_ , something from deep inside told him. _From afar. Now's the best time to escape._

"Little animal," Hibari growled, no doubt calling for him. Tsuna didn't need to hear the rest of the implied threat: _come here or I'll bite you to death._

He could always try escaping later, Tsuna repeated to himself, as some kind of assurance. He trusted his intuition to back him up and let him get away unscathed. Things were still relatively normal so far, so it wasn't so bad. Tsuna shoved both of his hands in his pockets before he followed Hibari to the picnic blanket.

* * *

Tsuna tried to hide the embarrassed blush on his cheeks as he stared at the food around him.

He was surrounded with _sandwiches_. Tamago-sando, katsu-sando, yakisoba-pan, teriyaki . . .

Tsuna glanced at Hibari, but the man was only looking at him, staring at his face, as if trying to gauge his reaction. Tsuna forced a polite smile.

"Eat," Hibari ordered, pointing to the food laid out in bento boxes.

Tsuna gulped. _Okay_ , so the food was obviously made for him. He didn't have a problem with sandwiches, not at all, but it was kind of silly to be presented with different kinds of it. It wasn't like he didn't eat different kinds of food, after all! As he explained earlier he only ate sandwiches during lunch because it was convenient —

A lightbulb went on in Tsuna's head. Hibari prepared sandwiches . . . because he had only seen Tsuna eat sandwiches.

Tsuna's blush went brighter. That only confirmed Hibari knew what he usually ate for lunch, didn't it? But he said _Tetsu_ told him, so that was a lie too, wasn't it? The man couldn't admit to doing charming gestures even if his life depended on it.

That made Tsuna laugh a little bit. It was kind of cute.

WAIT —

HOLD UP —

Did he just think Hibari was _cute_?! _Kami-sama_ , he was seriously losing it!

Another realization struck Tsuna. This set-up right now . . . wasn't it like a date?

 _A date._

He was on a picnic date with Hibari Kyouya under the cherry blossom trees.

Tsuna hid his face in his hands. What was the world coming to? Why did he only realize it right now? His intuition was right all along when it was urging him to escape! Now he was stuck in this thing that _romantic_ couples do and Hibari and him were hardly romantic, much less a couple!

It wasn't better when he felt several people watching them, or more appropriately, _guarding_ them, hidden behind the trees and bushes. Tsuna knew these were the Committee members watching over their leader and making sure they had the area alone. That would explain the lack of people since Hibari Kyouya hated crowding.

Tsuna wondered if he'd be able to fend off twenty people all at the same time.

"Why are you not eating?" Hibari cut him off from his thoughts, and if Tsuna's ears weren't kidding him, it sounded as if Hibari was _hurt_. Or maybe offended.

Tsuna quickly picked up the katsu-sando. "S-sorry, Hibari-san. I was distracted." How could he escape now? He could maybe fend off the twenty guys, but something else was bothering him; if he left now, Hibari would probably hurt even more and Tsuna didn't like that. Tsuna looked away in defeat and sighed, before taking a bite out of his breakfast.

"Kyouya," Tsuna heard Hibari speak.

"Hmm?" Tsuna mumbled while chewing his katsu.

"Kyouya," Hibari repeated.

Tsuna almost choked on his food.

Did he, Sawada Tsunayoshi, receive permission to call Hibari Kyouya by his first name?

He didn't know why, but that made Tsuna really, really happy.

"Kyouya," Tsuna repeated after him. He could feel his face getting hot but he was still smiling nonetheless. "Please call me Tsuna."

"Don't feel like it." Kyouya had a smirk on his lips as he mouthed, "Little animal."

Tsuna just bit on his sandwich as he tried to hide his already red face.

* * *

The rest of the _date_ , or picnic as Tsuna vehemently called it in his head, was done in silence. When they finished their sandwiches (served with tea, made by Kyouya too Tsuna guessed), the guy let him go without any more trouble. Tsuna exited the sakura trees area and he saw Kusakabe give him a nod which he returned.

He went straight home after that. The threat of Mukuro's visit still loomed over his head and he thought he'd be safest inside their house.

"How's your date, Tsu-kun?" his mom greeted him as soon as he stepped inside.

"It's not a date, mom!" Tsuna quickly retorted before any misconceptions arise. "We just had breakfast."

Her head appeared from the kitchen. "And where did you eat?"

"At the park."

"What did you have for breakfast?"

"Oh! Kyouya made some sandwiches and we sat under this sakura tree and . . ." Tsuna trailed off when he saw his mom smirking at him. "What?!"

She giggled. "I distinctly remember you calling him _Hibari-san_ earlier. In fact, the exact line was, 'Why is Hibari-san here, mom?!'" She even had the gall to imitate his voice. Damn that woman! "And then you ate under a sakura tree. Sure it's _not_ a date."

Tsuna glared at her but his face was clearly bright red. "It's an amicable breakfast with a nice view — between _friends."_

"I believe you, Tsu-kun. Anyway, now that you're here, guess what!"

She obviously didn't believe him, Tsuna pouted. But he decided to let it go for now. "What is it?"

"You have another visitor!"

Tsuna instantly paled.

The visitor's head appeared beside Nana's. "Hello, Tsuna-chan."

Tsuna ducked his head under his hands. "So . . . you heard all that didn't you, Basil?"

"Yes."

* * *

Tsuna glared at his mom as she happily served Basil's breakfast, placing food here and there on their dining table. She was stirring up something malicious, Tsuna just knew, with the way she was smiling and humming as she poured some syrup on Basil's pancakes. His mom was devious like that. He also knew that _she_ knew he was mad at her right now.

"Business trip, Basil?" Tsuna opened up their conversation, leaning closer over the table.

"I am on a one-week business trip, yes," the guy smiled, not forgetting to thank Nana for serving him breakfast.

Tsuna's mom nodded. "If you'll excuse me, I need to check up on the laundry. Treat Basil well, won't you Tsu-kun?" She patted Tsuna on the head before she exited the kitchen.

"She's the spawn of the devil," Tsuna lamented at Basil who laughed in response.

"If she is the spawn of the devil," Basil began, picking up his fork, "Then you are one too. She is your mother, after all."

"I suppose I am," Tsuna sighed, resting his chin on his palm. "I'm sorry you had to hear our bickering earlier." Not to mention his mom kept mentioning dates and what-not which was _absolutely_ untrue.

Basil swallowed before speaking up. "It is okay, Tsuna-chan." Tsuna noticed him staring at his face, which made his heart race a tiny bit faster. "I am glad you are wearing the ring I gave you."

 _Oh._ Tsuna had his head on his hand, and said hand had the ring on, so . . . _oh._ Tsuna coughed nervously with the same hand as he let go of his head.

"Thank you again for the ring, Basil. It means a lot to me," Tsuna smiled sheepishly. He had already thanked him through email, but he figured it was always best to thank in person.

Basil nodded, eating the rest of his pancakes.

Suddenly, Tsuna remembered something.

Or rather, someone.

 _Reborn._

That man knew his father, didn't he? He mentioned it once before, he even called him _Iemitsu_. If that was the case, would Basil know Reborn? Maybe they were at least acquaintances, or if not maybe Basil had heard of Reborn? Would Tsuna risk asking? He consulted his gut feeling, but it was pointing him to a different direction. _No,_ it told him.

He didn't listen to it earlier, Tsuna thought, and it had been right. It would be appropriate of Tsuna to listen to it now.

So Tsuna didn't ask about Reborn. He did ask about something else.

"Where are you heading off this time?" Tsuna grinned, watching him eat the next batch of pancakes conveniently set aside on another plate.

"Ah, now that you asked, it is near Namimori. I will be heading to Kawamoku."

 _Kawamoku_. Varia CEO's mansion. Tsuna shivered. He remembered it was a Sunday tomorrow so he'd have to do the cake delivery again.

"I need to have a personal meeting with one of the business's —

" _Basil_ ," Tsuna stared at him with blank eyes, "Please."

Basil chuckled. "Yes, no business trip details."

Tsuna never really liked talking about business, especially if it was the one his father managed.

* * *

Basil left a few hours later to prepare his lodging in Kawamoku. Tsuna's mom was pouting all the while though, muttering something like "needing a little push", "opportunity wasted", which Tsuna was sure had something to do with her mischievous plan, whatever it was.

In the end, his mom left the house too to hang out with her friends.

Tsuna was alone and he had a really, really bad feeling about it. Maybe hanging out in a public place was a better idea, after all.

He was about to go out when the doorbell rang. He took a peek and saw . . . a little girl with the strangest costume. She was also carrying a bouquet of flowers.

 _Little girls are safe,_ Tsuna assured himself as he went out and greeted the person. "Hello."

"Sawada Tsunayoshi?" she smiled, holding out the bouquet to him.

"Um, yes?" He received the flowers.

"Thank you for your patronage. Here's another delivery for you."

Flowers from Dino again? He knew the man was rich but sending flowers everday would be a bit too much. Besides, how did he know his home address? Was that information public knowledge or something? With the amount of people coming here it would seem like it.

"You're a very precious and treasured person, just like these flowers," the girl exclaimed and Tsuna thought it was quite a bit overwhelming. "Please take care of it and take care of yourself, Tsunayoshi-san."

"Thanks," though Tsuna didn't like how her message sounded so ominous, he sincerely appreciated the message. He checked out her name tag. "Take care too, Uni."

 _Uni_ nodded and smiled. "We may see each other again in the future, Tsunayoshi-san. You seem to be popular."

"More than I'd like to admit," Tsuna joked.

And with that, she left and rode in a limousine (Tsuna was very confused at this point) and he went back inside to properly look at his bouquet. There were no cards this time. He opted to reprimand Dino instead.

 _Dino! Thank you for the flowers. I do appreciate the gesture but you don't have to send flowers everyday._

He sent out his mail and while waiting for a reply, he took out an empty vase from their storage. When he returned there was a message waiting for him.

 _You already thanked me yesterday, didn't you? Don't worry, I promise you I won't bug you with too much flowers. I'm glad you liked the irises!_

Tsuna stared at the flowers. It was a bouquet of white orchids.

So somebody else sent these flowers, huh? With all the weirdness around him, Tsuna wasn't shocked with this revelation anymore. He couldn't even bother trying to figure out who sent these and opted to properly display them anyway. His mom would love the flowers. He supposed he could just make something up on who gave this to him.

Tsuna sighed.

* * *

Tsuna noticed he fell asleep from too much boredom when he opened his eyes and found everything dark. His neck hurt a bit too, probably because he fell asleep in an awkward angle on the couch.

He was about to go back to sleep when he remembered to call Takeshi to make-up from stopping his visit. Takeshi was forgiving as always but Tsuna couldn't help but think there was a grain of truth when the guy said, "Next time I see you, I'm going to hug the life out of you and I'm never letting go."

"I will need to breathe," Tsuna had responded in jest and Takeshi had only laughed.

His mom returned at around ten, they had a late-night dinner, and his mom didn't fail to notice the flowers sitting nicely in the middle of the dining table. Surprisingly, she didn't ask any questions. Tsuna then spent the rest of his evening in his room reading manga and mailing people, whoever was still awake or not busy at least.

Soon enough, sleep wanted to claim him again and before he did, he checked out the clock; it was eleven-fifty-two. He should sleep soon so he'd wake up early tomorrow. Closing the lights and snuggling back to his bed, he closed his eyes.

"Tsunayoshi-kun~"

"HIIIIEEEE!"


	17. Trouble

_uploaded on August 28, 2015_

Thanks to everyone who are still reading! I finally know what this story's format is! (After 16 chapters?!) It's like, an episodic thing with an overarching plot. So sometimes there might be chapters without the main plot, but I always try to incorporate even tiny little bits of hints about the main plot. Ah well, at least I think I do.

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Trouble**

* * *

 _This meeting is a waste of time. I want to shoot the trash who thought this was a good idea._

 _This is Xanxus alright,_ Tsuna thought glumly even as he giggled at the angry emoji that accompanied the man's message. His message had merit too; Tsuna just came from the mansion to deliver the cake and he was informed the Varia executives were in a business meeting. Tsuna considered it a good thing. He didn't think he would be able to meet Squalo in the eye when he still remembered what happened just the other day. In fact, he wouldn't be able to look straight at Xanxus too. Just the thought of his mails would send Tsuna in a fit of giggles and that would be a really effective death wish.

He took his time to reply as he sat in the train on the way back to Namimori. He also took his time to reply to all of his other mails, enough to distract him from remembering his awful experience the night before.

When the train stopped at Namimori station, Tsuna was in the middle of mailing Mochida that on the way out, he accidentally bumped into someone.

"Sorry!" he apologized just as fast, more out of habit than anything. He should _really_ stop using his phone while walking.

Tsuna looked up and he gaped; it was a man with blond hair that sparkled under the light, eyes the color of the setting sun — Tsuna quickly snapped out of it — with eyes the color of _orange,_ dammit! He tried to ignore the poetic words his mind gave him even though he had to admit, the man's eyes were mesmerizing to look at, as if it was pulling you in — _brain, please stop,_ Tsuna begged it desperately.

The man smiled at him, causing some strange flutters in the pits of his stomach. "Everything's fine," he assured Tsuna.

Before Tsuna could say anything else, the man boarded the train and the train sped off.

Tsuna was left gaping at nothing.

* * *

It threw him for a loop.

"It was only like, three seconds, but I was so dumbstruck," Tsuna complained, clutching his head with both of his hands. "I was stunned."

The guy beside him nodded as he spoke, his fingers placed on his chin in contemplation. "And? What happened next?"

"Nothing happened next," Tsuna whined, ruffling his hair. "I don't know what came over me."

"That only means one thing," the guy grinned.

Tsuna glanced at him in desolation. "What?"

"Love at first sight."

Tsuna almost fell off the bench when he heard that. "Don't mess with me," he pouted. "I don't even know why I'm telling you all this. I don't know you!"

"I'm Skull, but you can call me Skull-sama," the guy introduced himself as he slouched more on the bench. "Now you do know me. Besides, you suddenly started talking that I had to listen to you. _I_ don't know why you're telling me all this."

 _Oh, damn._ He did, didn't he? It was only then Tsuna realized what he had done and he was rightfully embarrassed. "S-sorry," he mumbled, bowing low. "I'm not myself today. What happened earlier really surprised the crap out of me, I think my mind's still in shock."

"Damn right you are."

Tsuna smiled sheepishly. "So I'm going now. Thanks for your time and for listening to me . . . I'm Tsuna, by the way."

Skull-sama shooed him off. "Go on, leave."

"See you later, Skull-sama!" Tsuna waved, jogging away. He didn't know why he said _see you later_ when he didn't even know the man. Ah, well, Namimori was a small town, so there might be a possibility. The guy was easy to spot too, with his wild purple make-up and _visual kei_ look. Maybe he was some kind of performer or something.

* * *

To forget the horrible memory from last night and the puzzling scene at the train station, Tsuna decided to be productive today. He thought it was time he seriously considered his options for University. And what better way to do that than to mull it over in a quiet place with desserts? So Tsuna was in a yogurt shop, his vanilla yogurt topped with chocolate chips and sprinkles placed nicely in front of him as he sat near the windows. He also had a notebook and pen handy to jot down his notes.

 _What are your interests?_ Tsuna asked himself, tapping his pen on his chin. Well, he liked reading manga, playing video games, baking stuff, going to random places in town —

 _Nothing useful for University_ , Tsuna thought glumly. He moved on to a different question. _What are your skills?_ He could bake things, thanks to his mom, but he didn't like pursuing that as a career. He's also pretty good with hand-to-hand combat and he's a fast runner. _That's all of it and s_ _till nothing useful,_ he sighed. Maybe he could try doing it the other way around; list down his course options and see if he found one appealing enough?

Before he could begin thinking over his options, his eyes travelled to the window and saw a commotion outside.

It was probably a celebrity, Tsuna thought when he noticed the forming crowd was mainly composed of curious girls. If Kyouya was here, they would all be bitten to death.

The crowd parted to reveal the celebrity. Tsuna had to admit, he was a little excited himself even if he didn't have any idea who it was.

Well . . . this group of people were _not_ celebrities. In fact, he knew these people more than he cared to admit. He was actually a little surprised they didn't maim the girls themselves for crowding around them.

 _The Varia._

They didn't have Fran with them today. They did have another person wearing a hood that obstructed the person's face. When Tsuna thought about it, it _was_ indeed a sight to see a group of handsome men wearing business suits, walking around in broad daylight as if they owned Namimori. He couldn't blame the girls at all for being so curious.

Wait, they had their meeting here in Namimori? Suddenly Tsuna could feel the dread creeping up his skin. That was also when he noticed they were headed for the yogurt shop — the very same shop he was in _right now_. The dread was explained and Tsuna didn't like the explanation at all. Why the heck were they headed for a freaking yogurt shop anyway?! Tsuna could see the girls watching in awe and amazement as these burly men were on the way to a cutesy-looking dessert shop.

Tsuna quickly searched around for a hiding place. Or maybe they wouldn't notice him at all! He was at the corner of the shop anyway and all the tables near him were for singles or couples. Group tables were near the front.

Tsuna wasn't willing to take the risk.

He resumed looking around. Everything was too bright — no suitable hiding spots. He should just escape but the shop only had one door and it was the entrance and the Varia were only a few steps away and —

A hand suddenly grabbed his shoulder.

"Beep! Beep! Boop!"

Tsuna was terrified at the beeping sounds from a _person._

"Distress detected from the little fish! Pipipip!"

Tsuna turned around to find a weird-looking girl with long white hair, streaked with lavender and pink, except for her bangs which were rainbow-colored. She wore a metal bikini as if it was her normal everyday clothes.

She smiled. "I'm going to turn you to a unicorn!"

 _A what?!_ Tsuna couldn't even comprehend the absolute insanity presented to him as his mind was occupied with the Varia who were at the door —

Something plopped on his head. He glanced at his reflection on the window and he found the long white _wig_ on his head, surprisingly covering his forever-messy brown hair. He looked back at the girl and discovered she was actually bald, save for the rainbow-colored bangs.

"What a cute little unicorn," she giggled. "Vroom vroom!"

Before Tsuna could say his thanks, the girl rolled away, her thigh-high boots strapped with wheels, and passed by the Varia who entered the shop. Tsuna quickly bowed down and fiddled with his notebook and pen, pretending to be busy.

So far, they hadn't made one move to look at his direction. Maybe he should _really_ busy himself right now. That way he would possibly seem like a different person just busy with school work. Decided, he continued his thoughts earlier: he should list down some courses and take note of the ones he would find interesting.

While writing down random University degrees, he watched the Varia from behind his pinkish-lavender wig. They picked out a table big enough to seat all of them while Squalo did his best to shout out his choice of yogurt to the whole shop. Bel was using his pen normally for once and was writing down something on a piece of paper. Tsuna could hear Lussuria list off additional toppings, Levi asked Xanxus's order and the hooded person (Tsuna was not sure if it was a man or a woman) took out a wallet from under the cloak.

Xanxus growled. "Give me their best."

Tsuna remembered Xanxus saying the same thing when they were at the cake shop. He only aimed for the best, didn't he? He did seem to be that kind of guy, Tsuna chuckled to himself which he quickly caught before somebody saw him laughing like a crazy person.

Then Tsuna could see Xanxus take out his phone.

Tsuna's eyes widened. He had his phone on loud since the train was a bit too noisy and he hadn't adjusted the volume yet. But it wasn't like Xanxus would do his silly emoji-filled mails in front of his subordinates, wouldn't he?

 _Xanxus doesn't give a damn,_ his mind told him.

Tsuna quickly scrambled for phone while maintaining to act normal and totally not in panic. As he fumbled with the settings to turn down the volume, he noticed Bel take out his phone as well, tapping on the screen with as much vigor as Xanxus. Then, without missing a beat, they both stored back their phones to wherever they had it stashed.

A second later, Tsuna's phone notified him of a new mail message.

 _We're having yogurt now. What's your favorite flavor, Ten?_

Tsuna stared at the various dessert-themed emoji before glancing back up at the Varia. Xanxus still looked as menacing as ever, which was a complete contrast to his messages. Bel was grinning (as he usually did) while saying something to the hooded person.

The feeling of dread was back but Tsuna chose to ignore it.

Before he could reply, he found himself looking at the window reflection. The wig looked natural on him and, without seeming narcissistic, he did look kind of cute. _Like a girl,_ his mind clarified.

Tsuna blushed. This was a bad hobby to get into.

He turned back to his phone when he glanced at the Varia — _Levi_ was staring straight at him.

"A cute girl," Tsuna heard Levi announce to the rest of the Varia. They all turned to face him.

 _He's going to die._

 _Don't panic. Don't panic._

Tsuna continued fiddling with his phone, using all of his efforts to stop his hand from shaking so bad. It wouldn't do any good if the Varia notice even a single shiver coming from him. If he was a random stranger in a yogurt shop, he (or she, in this context) wouldn't be scared of them — he remembered the reactions of the girls from outside the shop earlier — in fact, wouldn't _she_ be excited? _She_ got noticed by a group of handsome men —

"As always, you have pretty shit taste, Levi!" Squalo laughed at Levi, turning away from Tsuna.

"Yeah Levi-A-Than~," Bel tittered, turning away too. "If you're going to make us look, at least have the decency to pick good ones. The Prince's time is special~"

"Aiyah Levi, I have to agree with the boys," Lussuria smiled wistfully at Levi, patting the man's back.

Xanxus only looked away (after glaring at Levi) while the hooded person sighed and began taking out money from the wallet.

That went better than expected. Although Tsuna didn't know if he should feel relieved or not when they found him _not_ cute as a girl. He honestly thought he was kind of cute as a girl . . . he didn't even look _that_ different, he just had different hair!

Tsuna's new mail notification popped up.

 _One of the idiots felt he had to show us a "cute" girl. Wasn't cute at all._

Well, there went Tsuna's self-esteem outside the window. Sighing, he scrolled down the message.

 _If the idiot wanted cute, I know this guy... He's an angel of cakes._

Tsuna almost threw his phone in horror. He couldn't help looking up from the screen to watch Xanxus, but the man didn't even look like he said something so _sentimental_. It was making Tsuna's head hurt. At least he was pretty sure now they didn't recognize him at all because of a freaking wig.

* * *

The Varia went as fast as they came, not bothering to be quiet in voicing out their disappointment with the yogurt. Tsuna was finally free from their clutches.

Although he still had the wig with him. Where the heck would he put this thing?

* * *

Tsuna decided to go to the town library to concentrate in writing down the University courses. He wanted to forget the awful thing from last night, that disturbing thing from the train station and the Varia thing from the yogurt shop. He should at least do his best to figure out his next step in life.

With the wig hidden in his bag, he went inside the library.

And promptly stepped out when he saw Fuuta, Lambo and a girl with braids accompanying them. He wouldn't be able to deal right now with all the craziness he'd endured for the day. He apologized to them in his head as he ran away from the building.

* * *

Tsuna was running out of options.

In the end, he ended up back home. It was afternoon anyway. But he planned to go home much later . . .

Sighing, he went inside reluctantly. "Mom, I'm home!" he announced, removing his shoes.

"Welcome home, Tsunayoshi-kun~"

"HIIIIIEEEE!"

* * *

"Why are you still here?!" Tsuna shouted at the man currently sprawled on his sofa, swishing a can of softdrink.

Nana answered him instead. "Mukuro-kun was so sleepy, Tsu-kun! So I let him sleep for a while. He also helped me with the chores. He repaired one of our broken chairs!"

"Kufufu~ I'm good with construction."

"That doesn't make it any better!" Tsuna ran a hand through his hair in frustration, then glared at Mukuro. "What are you doing here, Mukuro?"

"I'm here to convince you to lend your body to me," the man chuckled, earning a gasp from his mom. Tsuna's face met his palm.

"That's going to be hard," Nana decided to give her input. "You have lots of competition."

"MOM," Tsuna turned to his mom, desperation in his voice, "Mukuro was talking about me working for his cafe. Whatever you're thinking, that's not it!"

Mukuro continued to chuckle. "Mama can think whatever she wants. Isn't that right, Mama?"

"You got it!"

Tsuna's face met both of his palms. Mukuro was on the _Mama_ -level now. As if Byakuran calling his mom _Mama_ wasn't enough . . . Speaking of which, Mukuro's creepiness level just outclassed Byakuran's. Tsuna didn't believe that was possible.

Tsuna turned back to Mukuro. "You won't be able to convince me to work for you, Mukuro. I'm fine with the cake shop right now."

"Tsunayoshi-kun, it would be for the best if you get away and go with me instead. Chrome would also very much love to have you."

That stopped Tsuna for a second before he glared at Mukuro once more. "That's unfair, Mukuro. Don't use Chrome on me."

Mukuro smiled. "But you do know she likes you?"

"And I like her too but that's very unfair," Tsuna pouted, crossing his arms.

Nana let out another gasp. "Tsu-kun likes a _girl_?!"

"Mom, you're not making it any easier on me," Tsuna whined, finally sinking down on the couch beside Mukuro. He smiled wistfully at the man who was watching him. "I'm sorry, Mukuro, but right now I am really, perfectly fine with the cake shop. It's fun, I get to meet lots of people, Uncle Kawahira is a good Boss. It's all great." He hesitated, but added, "Maybe someday . . ."

Mukuro leaned over. "That is enough for me, Tsunayoshi-kun."

 _Too close,_ Tsuna's mind alerted him, but his body refused to cooperate. There was something mysterious in those red and blue eyes that made Tsuna's heart beat faster, even if he was trying his best to get away —

Tsuna could feel his face heating up. His eyes drifted away from Mukuro's towards his mom, who was watching silently in earnest as she covered her mouth with her hands. That was when Tsuna snapped back to reality.

"Gah!" he scrambled out of the way, standing up. "I-I'm glad we have a solid conclusion, Mukuro. You may leave," he gestured towards the door.

"That we do," Mukuro chuckled as he removed himself from the couch. "Thank you for having me, Mama. Breakfast and lunch were lovely."

Nana quickly let go of her mouth and smiled at Mukuro. "That's hardly enough for the help you gave me."

The man nodded at her, then at Tsuna. "I will take my leave. We shall see each other again, Tsunayoshi-kun."

"I like him," Nana concluded as soon as Mukuro left through the door. Tsuna could only sigh loudly as he let himself drop on the couch, trying his best not to cry.

* * *

In his room, Tsuna sat in front of a mirror and put on the wig.

He did look quite convincing. Maybe if he wore more appropriate clothing, he could easily pass —

He pulled off the wig and threw it across the room, his face blushing a bright red. _Really, really bad hobby to get into._

The wig went in a box and stored somewhere deep within the recesses of his closet.


	18. Drop

_uploaded on September 4, 2015_

The wig is a stuff of legends. Thanks for reading the story!

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Drop**

* * *

It would be an understatement to say that Tsuna was nervous when he went to work on Monday.

He was freaking spooked. He almost called in sick.

Today would be the start of his training, as announced by Reborn the last time Tsuna saw him. His training was only about making coffee, right? It would probably be straightforward and possibly simple, right? Then why did Tsuna feel like the world was about to end and everything was out to get him? This was especially apparent when Reborn was around with his dangerous aura. Coffee-making training could very well be the training from the seven depths of hell, Tsuna imagined with misery.

The fear and panic stayed even after he saw Reborn wearing the black version of the shop uniform, except for the apron, which was orange and had cutesy designs exactly how Uncle Kawahira liked it.

The trepidation lingered even when Tsuna noticed Reborn's hair mussed up in a presentable way, the usual hat missing from the usual spot on his head.

The dread, the terror and the creeps remained even when Reborn smiled at him.

"Let's start your training."

Tsuna almost fainted.

* * *

Tsuna's coffee-making training with Reborn was surprisingly humane. Reborn explained things thoroughly and without the use of physical and verbal torture. Even though Tsuna was far from understanding the basic concepts of using their coffee machines, Reborn didn't feel the need to punish him for his incompetence.

It was far too scary for Tsuna. Reborn was humane. And it was only eleven in the morning!

Right now though, they were taking a break from training; Reborn made himself an espresso and Tsuna returned to the register. The shop was quiet as it usually was on a normal day and Tsuna actually preferred it that way.

Reborn took a sip of his espresso as he lounged on his new armchair, specifically meant for his use. "The rules mostly apply to me, but it is important you know it too."

Tsuna turned to him and tilted his head. "Rules?"

"About your training."

 _Eh?_ "But we already started?"

"This is for a different training."

 _What?_ Tsuna was confused now. "Is there anything else Uncle Kawahira requested?"

"I am to train your decision-making skills," Reborn continued, taking another sip of his coffee. "The method is left up to me. Downside is I can only do it during work hours."

Tsuna stared at him incredulously. "I think work-related training should _really_ only be done during work hours. Besides, what kind of training is that? Decision-making skills?"

Reborn stared back at him. "Who knows."

"Aren't you the one training me?! Why wouldn't you know?!"

The older man waved him off, looking away. "It's not part of my job description."

 _This is so frustrating!_ One moment, this guy was a decent human being, and now he had reverted to his usual, irritating self. Tsuna wanted to tear his hair out. "I bet annoying me is part of your job description, given how much you do it," he pouted, settling for crossing his arms to stop himself from grabbing his head and potentially going bald.

Reborn only smirked at him. For some reason, it pissed Tsuna off even more.

In the end, Tsuna decided to be the "bigger" man and didn't pursue the topic any longer, opting to forget his annoyance. He took out his phone and decided to reply to a message he received earlier, ignoring Reborn on purpose. Well, _tried_ , as he was pretty sure he could feel the man's eyes fixated on him. When he glanced to confirm his suspicion, Reborn _was_ observing his every move. It was unnerving.

"I noticed you use your phone a lot. I was under the impression you lacked friends," Reborn quipped.

"I-I have friends!" Tsuna quickly announced as he held onto his phone dearly. "They may not always be around but I do have them. A-and the customers are friends too," he added, blushing a little bit. At least Tsuna considered them as friends. He wondered how _they_ looked at him though? "Besides, I thought you said you're good with research? I guess not —

"Yamamoto Takeshi. Nineteen years old. Currently studying —

"I got it," Tsuna interrupted him as he buried his face into his hand. Actually, now that Tsuna thought about it, he didn't want to know the other things Reborn knew.

"It's good to form connections this early," Reborn nodded. "Networking is an important skill for a boss, after all."

"I'm not a boss," Tsuna frowned. "Why do you keep saying that?"

"Who knows."

This man would be the death of him, Tsuna thought."Now you're just annoying me on purpose."

And just like earlier, Reborn only smirked at him. "Everything I do has a purpose, _dame_ -Tsuna."

Tsuna wanted to cry. He wouldn't last if this was how his co-worker would be for the rest of his time in Kawahira's Baked Goodies. He was seriously considering talking it over with Uncle Kawahira but decided against it when he remembered their coffee-making training earlier. Reborn could be _normal_ , Tsuna thought, so maybe all hope wasn't lost yet? There was still some possibility to have a normal co-worker, no matter how little that possibility was.

Tsuna held onto that zero-point-zero-zero-zero-zero-one percent chance.

He just hoped it would be worth it.

* * *

Tsuna was in the middle of knowing which buttons did which when the door slammed open.

"I NEED CAKE!" the person bellowed, stomping towards the display case.

Tsuna gulped as he looked at the man, then glanced at the clock, then back at him. "Aren't you in the middle of class, Ryohei?"

"No! I let the kids play today," Ryohei explained, pointing at one of the cakes. "This one!"

"Why the sudden need of cake?" Tsuna asked, but he went and fetched a slice of Earthly Gravity cake anyway.

Ryohei suddenly looked serious. "I need the energy boost."

Tsuna was pretty sure there were better alternatives for energy-giving foods, and given Ryohei was a genuine fitness buff, shouldn't he know about these things? Then Tsuna remembered the time they ate ice cream with Takeshi and how he mentioned ice cream would never ruin his meal plan . . . the world suddenly went bleak.

"In fact, I'm too weak right now," Ryohei explained. "I'm on the verge of my consciousness."

 _The verge of what —_

Ryohei dropped like a rock.

"EEP!" Tsuna shrieked, almost letting go of the cake. He placed the cake safely on the counter before turning to Reborn, who was . . . watching the whole thing without a care in the world. Tsuna still took his chances. "Reborn, p-please help me with Ryohei?"

"Not my problem."

Well, Tsuna already expected as much. Without bothering Reborn anymore he tried his best to pull Ryohei up to a spare chair. The man was now seated as comfortable as possible, but he was still unconscious. Maybe laying him down would be better — the staff room did have a sofa after all — or the clinic next door would be better, right? But Tsuna didn't have the means to carry Ryohei to either of those two places and Reborn refused to help him. He could call for Uncle Kawahira or maybe he could call the doctor himself?

He was spared from deciding when he felt a hand grab his wrist. "C-cake . . ."

Ryohei was awake and requesting for his cake.

Tsuna didn't waste any second and fetched the cake and placed it on Ryohei's table.

"E-eat . . ." Ryohei mumbled, pointing at his mouth.

Tsuna stopped; was _Ryohei_ requesting to be spoon-fed?! But he _was_ weak and it was very strange to see Kyoko's _onii-chan_ to be so lifeless. He could barely keep his eyes open!

There was no more doubt, Tsuna thought determinedly, as he grabbed the fork and cut a piece of cake. He held the fork near Ryohei's mouth. "Aah."

With eyes closed, Ryohei complied and opened his mouth.

Tsuna's fingers were shaking as he forked the cake in Ryohei's mouth. This was just so freaking embarrassing! He was just thankful Kyoko wasn't here to watch him feed her brother. Knowing her, she'd probably take pictures and Tsuna didn't want that kind of permanent reminder of him doing embarrassing things.

Anyway, he shouldn't let this bother him so much. He was doing a good deed and helping Ryohei — it was nothing to be embarrassed about! In an effort to lessen his discomfort, he focused on watching Ryohei chew on the food. Eating cake was normal, nothing shameful about that at all, even if he was the one who fed Ryohei —

 _Wrong thought! Wrong thought!_ Tsuna panicked and he looked away, his face heating up. That was _not_ what he was getting at. _Stupid brain!_

That was when Tsuna caught Reborn's eyes.

Tsuna stiffened. Right, Reborn was there all this time.

But the man didn't say anything. In fact, he turned around and made himself another cup of espresso.

So it was like that, Tsuna concluded, heaving out a sigh. Reborn didn't care about anything at all.

Wait . . . why did that bother him anyway? It wasn't as if Reborn had the responsibility to _care_. They were just co-workers! And the guy would probably say something like, "it's not in my job description" or something irritating. Tsuna should also _not_ care. So without acknowledging Reborn, Tsuna turned back to Ryohei who still looked like he was about to faint any second.

Tsuna picked up another piece of cake with the fork. "Aah?"

* * *

Eventually Ryohei managed to eat all of the cake while Tsuna forked it to his mouth. The more Tsuna did it, the less awkward he felt and Ryohei slowly turned back to his usual self with each bite. Tsuna didn't know how the heck that was possible with eating cake; he was just glad Ryohei was well now. He even ignored the fact that during the last few bites, Ryohei was already fine and was just enjoying getting fed by Tsuna. Yes, Tsuna _definitely_ ignored it and refused to think about it.

"What happened anyway?" Tsuna asked as he placed the glass of milk on Ryohei's table.

"I extremely forgot to eat breakfast and lunch!" Ryohei laughed, grabbing the milk. "I also forgot to eat dinner last night."

"How — what — " Tsuna paled as he pinched the bridge of his nose. He knew Ryohei was forgetful, just not this much . . . " And then you thought eating cake would be the best choice of action?"

"Sweets keep me up! I'm awake now!" Ryohei downed the milk in one gulp. "I'll remember to eat dinner later, I promise."

Tsuna frowned. "I think you should eat _now._ "

"But I just had cake?"

" _Real_ food. Like carbs and protein or whatever those are called!" Tsuna didn't know why, but he could feel Kyoko berating him in his head, that he should know better than to trust Ryohei to take care of himself. He liked getting fit and exercising but sometimes he takes it to the extreme, literally!

"Hahaha! But you're right, Tsuna! I'll pass by the convenience store before going back to school."

Tsuna felt as if a weight was lifted off him and he sighed, sitting down next to Ryohei. "Kyoko-chan will be mad at me."

"Why? My sister's very kind and understanding. Besides, I think she'd love to know you took care of me, Tsuna!" Ryohei grinned, patting Tsuna's fluffy hair.

Tsuna sputtered, looking away. "Just leave out the part about the feeding . . ."

* * *

Tsuna found himself at a loss of words.

"Are you seriously doing this?" Tsuna glanced at Reborn, who was looking at somewhere far away.

"Yes," the man hummed, a sandwich between his hands.

Tsuna was horrified. " _Everyday?_ "

"Whenever I feel like it."

"W-we should take our lunchtime on different hours, you know? So we don't have to bother Uncle Kawahira."

"Inconsequential. The old man already approved of my lunch breaks."

Tsuna couldn't think of anything else to say to that. He returned to his own sandwich and stared, mulling over the implications of this arrangement.

As if it was the answer to his question, Tsuna felt _something,_ somewhere that his eyes immediately snapped up from the sandwich and over to that direction. Kyouya was standing from afar, far enough to almost blend with the background, as he leaned on a wall. He was not looking at Tsuna, but rather at _Reborn_.

Kyouya then removed himself from the wall and walked away.

 _What the heck was that?_ Tsuna wondered. He glanced back at Reborn who had already started eating his sandwich.

"I have to say, this is a strange place to eat lunch at," Reborn mumbled.

Tsuna couldn't blame him for having that thought. The place they were at wasn't exactly the type of place where you eat lunch you brought; they were at the plaza, which was surrounded with different little shops and restaurants, but him and Reborn were seated at the middle where the fountain was. Lots of people would pass by, coming to and fro from different directions, and Tsuna noticed that a lot of girls had taken notice of Reborn. This guy looked out of place here after all.

"I like watching people," Tsuna replied, finally taking a bite out of his sandwich. "If you want to eat somewhere else, you're free to do so."

"You're too uptight. I only made an observation." Reborn nodded at a bunch of girls who giggled and hurried away.

 _So he knows about the girls,_ Tsuna concluded before glaring at him. "I usually eat alone on my lunch breaks." And if Reborn was around, people had the tendency to look and it was disturbing for Tsuna.

"Then you better get used to this sooner."

Tsuna ate the rest of his sandwich in silence. Maybe he should consider packing lunch and eating at the staff room instead. He didn't know why, but Reborn seriously, _really_ annoyed him. It wasn't at the level like all the bullies he had in the past, but rather it was a different kind and wasn't comparable at all. He annoyed him but at the same time it was kind of endearing —

Tsuna _did not_ just think that.

NO.

Reborn was annoying. _Period._

"I'm getting coffee. Want anything, Tsuna?"

 _Reborn is annoying,_ Tsuna thought stubbornly.

* * *

The rest of the day was tame, relative to a normal (crazy) day at Kawahira's Baked Goodies. Chrome passed by to purchase a whole cake this time (she mentioned the Cafe Illusione staff loved the cakes). Lambo and Fuuta introduced I-Pin, who was a real adorable kid albeit shy, and looked to be normal compared to the other two. Well, that was until she took a bite of cake and started blushing all over and fainted on the spot.

"She loves sweets," Fuuta had told him as if that was enough explanation for the fainting.

"She's a weirdo," Lambo had offered his input and all Tsuna could think of was, _all of you are weirdoes._

I-Pin had woken up a few seconds after and apologized, and promptly fainted again when she took her second bite.

"She usually eats spicy and garlic-filled food so maybe her body's in shock," Fuuta had remarked.

 _That doesn't even make any sense,_ Tsuna thought as he hid his face in his hand.

"I told you she's a weirdo," Lambo had snickered while eating his own piece of cake.

In the end, I-Pin recovered once more and after fainting for the third time, Tsuna concluded that maybe cake wasn't for her. But she was so determined that after recovering again, she didn't faint anymore although it still looked like she was going to fall over any second.

"I-Pin's the number one martial artist in Namimori, you know," Fuuta randomly piped up while they watched I-Pin struggle with her cake.

"Ohh, what about me, Fuuta? What am I number one with?!"

Fuuta glanced at Lambo. "Number one at being annoying."

Lambo pouted for the rest of their visit. Tsuna was sure it was Reborn who had that title though.

That was the last significant event to happen to their shop and then it was closing time.

Tsuna busied himself with the register while Reborn, surprisingly, set aside the chairs and tables. _He's acting like a proper employee,_ Tsuna thought in disbelief. Next thing he knew, they were already walking outside and going home.

"Are you following me again?" Tsuna glared at Reborn who was walking alongside him.

"I go where I want to go."

Tsuna frowned. "I don't suppose that's my house, is it?"

"I wonder."

It wasn't his house, Tsuna realized, when they reached the neighborhood and Reborn turned around to walk back in the opposite direction. It was a good thing too, since Tsuna didn't want any more stalkers finding out where he lived. It was supposed to be his safe haven but one by one, people were managing to get inside one way or another. Tsuna should stalker-proof his house. He should also have a long, serious talk with his mom about letting strangers in.

Tsuna sighed as he continued his walk to his house, ignoring Julie who was at the street corner, Squalo who was on one of the rooftops, Byakuran who was sitting atop a tree and Kyouya who was following behind him.


	19. Nicknames

_uploaded on September 11, 2015_

I have to confess something. The story seems to be shifting towards a particular pairing rather than All27. But we'll see where it goes . . . Sometimes the characters move on their own I'm not even aware with what I'm writing anymore.

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Nicknames**

* * *

"Mom."

"Yes, Tsu-kun?"

"We had a talk just the other night."

"I believe so, yes."

"Then why is there a guy eating at our dining table?!"

"He said he was your senpai, Tsu-kun! He watched over you at school so I'm very thankful to him."

 _He did watch over me all right,_ Tsuna thought with sarcasm. The guy didn't lie about that but it was bending the truth of about one-hundred-eighty degrees.

He sighed. "I'll talk to him," Tsuna mumbled while his mom only smiled at him. Sometimes, Tsuna didn't know if she was really naive or doing all these on purpose.

When Tsuna reached the dining room, Mochida was already halfway through his breakfast. "Sorry, I'm a bit too hungry from the trip."

"Why are you even here, Mochida-san?"

"Have you thought about my proposal?"

Tsuna raised his eyebrows. "Proposal?"

Mochida pointed a spoon at his direction. "Packing your things and living with me in Tokyo."

Tsuna heard a gasp from behind him. He suddenly felt weak as he hid his face in his hand. "I already told you I can take care of myself, Mochida-san. Don't tell me that's why you came here?" Tsuna didn't know if this was supposed to be flattering or just plain disturbing.

"I passed by to visit you, that's all," Mochida replied, then pointed at the spot next to him, which already had a plate with food on it. Tsuna couldn't do anything about this right now anyway so he decided to indulge the guy and sat down next to him. He did come all the way from Tokyo, and even though the guy was a big egoist that came off as bothersome, Tsuna still considered him a friend.

"Ken-kun helped me with setting the table," Nana giggled, sitting on one of the chairs herself.

Tsuna stared at his mom incredulously. "So he's been here all this time?"

"I had to make him do something while you were taking a bath."

Suddenly Tsuna felt grateful to his mom.

"Anyway, Mochida-san, I have work in an hour. I'm sorry I won't be able to accomodate you longer."

Mochida looked annoyed. "The cake shop, right? If you're with me, you won't even have to work —

"Mochida-san, I do appreciate your offer. For now I'm enjoying my time at the cake shop," Tsuna tried his best to smile. Why did Tsuna suddenly feel like this was a repeat of his conversation with Mukuro?

As soon as he said that, Nana grinned. Tsuna felt imminent danger. He _knew_ that smile. "Oh! Why don't you go with him Ken-kun? You'll see how much of a hardworker Tsu-kun is!"

"That's a great idea, Mama!"

Tsuna paled. He couldn't even bring himself to glare at his mom as she tittered her way through breakfast. She was a big stirrer of trouble and what was worse, she was actually enjoying it! Tsuna suddenly had a flashback of his father offering him permanent residence in Italy and now he almost regretted choosing his mom.

* * *

"Huh. I didn't know the cake shop is in the train station," Mochida muttered as they made their way inside Namimori Station, passing by several shops.

"I don't think the cake shop was here when you left for University," Tsuna explained. "It's fairly new."

Mochida was looking around and seemed to be taking note of the other shops in the area. "In fact, I don't think I paid much attention to the shops in the first place."

Tsuna giggled a bit. He was the same after all. He only noticed the shops when he was out looking for work and now he couldn't even be bothered.

Mochida stopped walking all of a sudden. "This is where we met the last time," he mumbled before walking again. Hearing that, Tsuna himself looked around and saw this particular antique shop, looking quite out of place in a modernized train station. It had a sign on it:

 _Hamaguri Antique Shop_

 _Temporarily closed. Opening again soon!_

It even had a smiley on it, Tsuna mused. _Oh well._ Tsuna was a little curious since he hadn't been inside an antique shop before, but he supposed there's a more appropriate time for him to visit the shop. For now, he should focus on getting to work, and besides, Mochida had been calling his name for the past minute already.

* * *

"Reborn."

"What?"

"Please stop glaring at Mochida-san."

"I'm not glaring at Mochida- _san_."

"Your eyes are telling me otherwise."

"My eyes are normal like these."

"They're more slanty than usual!"

"And how would you know what's usual, _dame_ -Tsuna? Do you stare at my eyes that much?"

"N-no! Argh!"

As Tsuna turned his head away in embarrassment (did Reborn really know he stared at his eyes sometimes?) he saw Mochida watching his face in contemplation.

" _This_ is the man you're working with?" Mochida raised an eyebrow at him, before turning his head to return the glare at Reborn. "I don't like him."

"W-well, Reborn could be nice sometimes . . . actually, just ignore him."

"He has _that_ aura," Mochida made a weird gesture of encircling his arms. "Reminds me of your guard dog, only stronger."

"Takeshi's not a guard dog. And what do you mean ' _that_ aura'?" Tsuna knew Reborn exhibited a dangerous aura and that was probably what Mochida was talking about, but Tsuna never felt the same thing from Takeshi. Except maybe the times when Takeshi was really, really angry, but Tsuna could count in one hand the number of times that happened.

"Can't really describe it, but it's very annoying," Mochida grumbled. "Greedy? Nah, that can't be right."

It was Tsuna's turn to raise an eyebrow. "How can you relate greediness to Takeshi?"

Mochida frowned. "I don't. I can't think of the right word for it."

"Oi Tsuna," Reborn interrupted their talk. "Instead of loitering around, why don't you go back to your training?"

"Ehhh? But I thought we're on break!"

"Laziness is a horrific trait for a boss."

"I'm not a boss," Tsuna glared at Reborn, but stood up from his chair anyway, walking back to their work area and leaving Mochida behind at his table.

Reborn pointed at one of the coffee machines and Tsuna walked over to it. "I find it amazing how you can vehemently deny something most people would die for," the man scoffed.

Tsuna was having none of it. "I don't even know what you're talking about."

Reborn smirked. "Good job, Tsuna."

Tsuna stared at him with extreme confusion. _What the heck?_

Mochida still looked thoughtful, as if he was still trying to think of the right word for what he wanted to say about Reborn.

* * *

"You eat out during lunch?" Mochida asked as they walked through the park, slinging the bag of sandwiches over his shoulder. He had insisted to buy their lunch despite Tsuna's great effort to reject his offer.

As soon as he spotted a vacant bench, Tsuna quickly headed for it, followed by Mochida. "Yeah, I do," he finally answered when he sat down. "Actually, Reborn has been bothering me about that for a few days now. But you're here and I don't see him tormenting me. I should keep you around," Tsuna laughed at his own joke.

Mochida looked at him calmly. "I'm going to take that seriously."

"No! I was just kidding! University comes first."

"My proposal stands."

"Mochida-san . . ."

The guy handed him his sandwich. "Isn't it time to call me by my first name? Even Mama calls me by name."

Tsuna frowned a bit. "She calls _everyone_ by first name. And I have to ask, did she force you to call her _Mama_?"

"Not at all." Mochida took out his own sandwich. "It kind of comes naturally."

 _Naturally._ That didn't even make any sense!

"You're diverting the topic. Call me Kensuke," the guy demanded.

Tsuna sighed. He did have a point, kind of. "Fine, fine. Kensuke."

Kensuke looked away. "Good."

"Then, in exchange, please stop calling me _dame_ -Tsuna."

The guy huffed, crossing his arms. "I stopped calling you that long ago!"

"You just called me that last month."

"Anyway, I have more pressing matters to talk to you about," he suddenly changed the topic, Tsuna noticed. Trust Kensuke to berate him from changing topics when he himself did it. "I really gotta ask — why is Hibari Kyouya stalking us?" As if to emphasize his point, he used his thumb to gesture behind them and when Tsuna turned around to look he found Kyouya standing several meters away, staring straight at their backs.

Tsuna quickly looked back ahead. "He's keeping the peace of Namimori?" he tried.

"That doesn't explain why he followed us from the cake shop, to the sandwich shop, then to the park. Unless you mean you're a magnet for trouble, which, honestly, won't surprise me one bit."

"I resent that," Tsuna pouted but didn't bother refuting, because if one were to look at it objectively he _was_ a magnet for trouble and overall craziness. "Kyouya is just doing his patrols. Maybe it happened to be at the same places we went to."

Kensuke almost choked on his sandwich. "What the hell, Tsuna?!"

Tsuna panicked. "What? What did I say?"

Kensuke looked even more annoyed than usual. "You got issues calling me Kensuke when you're calling the freaking vigilante _Kyouya_."

"T-things happened," Tsuna bowed down his head, feeling the rush of blood on his face as he remembered their date — _ahem,_ picnic — the other day.

"I seriously can't believe this," the guy continued to grumble, biting down harder on his sandwich. "Only gone for a year and this is what happens. Should've brought you to Tokyo the first time around. Shouldn't have trusted the guard dog too much."

"Hey, don't get so jealous," Tsuna joked, finally calming down from embarrassment. "And Takeshi's not a guard dog."

It was at that moment Tsuna saw something trigger within Kensuke, his intuition warning him of impending danger. "Of course I'm JEALOUS!" the man exclaimed, a tad too loud that everyone within the hearing distance of five meters heard his outburst. Tsuna could only hide his face in his hand as he trembled on the spot. "Hibari Kyouya reeks of the same aura _that_ Reborn has. It's very aggravating! And what's more annoying is I can't even explain what it is!"

"And just what it is you are referring to, Mochida Kensuke?" A tonfa suddenly appeared under Kensuke's chin.

"Hibari Kyouya. A pleasure to have made your acquaintance," Kensuke mocked-greeted him, not deterred at all by the metal thing under his face.

"K-Kyouya," Tsuna called for the other guy's attention, which he returned by moving his eyes towards him. "I can handle this. Thank you. And Kensuke," he turned to the guy next to him, who was still glaring defiantly at Kyouya, "Stop provoking Kyouya."

"I didn't learn sword fighting for nothing, Tsuna," Kensuke smirked while Kyouya's tonfa only pressed closer to his chin.

Tsuna wanted to go home and sleep and forget this day even existed. "You don't even have a sword!" he wailed at Kensuke. "No violence please," he tried to pull the tonfa away but Kyouya quickly retracted his arms. "He's safe, Kyouya. He's a friend."

Kyouya sneered. "Friends do not automatically mean _safe_."

Kensuke growled. "As if I'd let something dangerous happen to Tsuna!"

 _"_ It is a waste of my time to explain to fools like you," Kyouya sneered again, but this time he listened to Tsuna and actually walked away.

"Let's just finish our sandwiches and go back as soon as possible," Tsuna sighed in defeat.

Kensuke only glared at Kyouya's disappearing form.

* * *

When they returned to the cake shop, Reborn was nowhere to be found. "He's on he's break," Uncle Kawahira had told them, which kind of explained why Reborn didn't follow them out when Tsuna went on _his_ break. The man took his break on his own time, apparently.

"Tsuna, if I may ask."

"Yes, Kensuke?"

"Why are you hiding behind the counter?"

Tsuna failed to say a decent answer on time as somebody else replied for him. "Tsu-chan's a silly little creature, isn't he?" Tsuna heard the man chuckle, the creeps running up his spine. "He does like to hide from me even though it's futile."

"B-Byakuran," Tsuna called from his safe little spot behind the counter, "Please don't scare Kensuke."

"I'm not scared," Kensuke grumbled from just beyond his counter.

"Kensuke?" Tsuna could sense Byakuran's interest spike up, making the chills worsen by the second, his gut feeling going all out in a frenzy. _Not good not good not good._ "Mochida Kensuke?" Tsuna could practically see the smirk that accompanied Byakuran's voice. "As in _the_ Mochida Kensuke?"

"What about it?" Kensuke retaliated.

"Aren't you one of Tsu-chan's main bullies?" Byakuran's voice was sickeningly sweet.

"In the past, yeah —

"I've never been the one to forgive bullies."

"Tough shit."

"Tsu-chan's so nice. Sometimes, I honestly think he's a little too nice. But I wouldn't be here if not for his kindness."

Kensuke snorted. "At least we agree on something."

"Aah~ but I never really liked competition. Tsu-chan's only mine to bully~"

"What the hell is that supposed to mean —

"It means no fighting!" Tsuna managed to muster up his courage before any battle broke out, hoisting himself in between the two men. "N-no fighting, okay?" he repeated, the threat of paying for broken things running in his head.

Byakuran grinned at him. "I love it when you use your authoritarian voice. It's so nostalgic."

 _Nostalgic?_ But they've only really known each other for a few weeks and . . . Tsuna gave up. If there was one person he'd never be able to understand, it was going to be Byakuran. And maybe Reborn. But Byakuran would get the first spot. Besides, _authoritarian voice_? He was speaking normally like he usually did, he didn't notice his voice change at all.

"Ah well, I already got what I wanted; to see you and to buy my Fluffy Feather cake." Byakuran held up his box of cake to prove his point. "I'll be leaving for the meantime. Take good care of yourself, Tsu-chan." He leaned over and whispered, "Predators will always be predators."

Byakuran left while humming, leaving a very disturbed Tsuna behind.

"That guy has that aura too," Kensuke growled.

* * *

As nighttime approached, Tsuna was staring off into space that he failed to notice Kensuke until the very last second.

The guy had his face a bit too close to Tsuna's. There would've been _contact_ if not for the hand on Kensuke's shoulder, stopping him from moving further.

"W-what!" Tsuna squealed as he stepped back, bumping into Reborn who was standing right behind him. It was his hand, arm extended forward beside Tsuna's face, that stopped Kensuke.

"Attempting assault on an employee?" Reborn muttered darkly. "I should kick your ass out."

Kensuke grabbed Reborn's hand and forcefully removed it from his shoulder. "I was just looking at Tsuna's face." The guy turned to Tsuna. "Did you know that sometimes, your eyes kind of change? Maybe it was the lighting."

"M-maybe," Tsuna replied weakly, his lips forming a frown. Okay, so it was another one of those times where somebody commented about his eyes. But whenever he checked himself on a mirror, his eyes were still his normal, brown ones. He had never seen it change like how these people were describing.

Tsuna saw Reborn fix the cuff of his sleeve — how couldn't he, when the man did it by encircling his arms around Tsuna — and dust it off in mock fashion. "Ah, that perfectly explains why you have your face only millimeters away from him. What do you have to say to that, Tsuna?"

Tsuna sighed. This was too much for him to handle right now. "Kensuke's just fooling around, Reborn. He didn't mean anything malicious with that." At least Tsuna hoped he didn't. "Anyway, I think it's about time you head back, Kensuke. Don't you have classes tomorrow?"

"I actually don't, and I'll be here in Namimori till Sunday. But you do have a point. I've been with you long enough."

"Thank you, Kensuke." Tsuna tilted his head back to look at Reborn upside-down. "Happy now?"

"Not yet."

Kensuke ruffled his hair, looking exasperated. "Geez, alright, I'm leaving. Just remember my offer is still up for grabs." He turned around and left the shop.

"Offer?"

"Ow! You didn't have to pull my hair," Tsuna cried as he nursed the part where his hair was pulled. "Kensuke wants me to live with him in Tokyo — and no, I'm not even considering it."

"You were calling him Mochida-san earlier too, not Kensuke," Reborn said offhandedly.

"Things happened," Tsuna looked away, suddenly feeling an ugly case of _déjà vu_.

At that precise moment, the shop door burst open, revealing Kensuke again, his chest heaving.

"I finally know what it is!" He was uncharacteristically excited, Tsuna noticed that it made him excited too. Before Tsuna could stop himself he asked Kensuke what it was.

Then his mind prodded him. _You will regret asking._

Tsuna was horrified. He didn't want to know now!

But Kensuke was oblivious to his realization when he pointed a finger at Reborn. "That annoying aura that's getting worse by the second."

He _did_ regret asking. If it was something about Reborn, or any other of the crazy people around him, it was never a good thing!

"It's possessiveness!" the guy concluded, looking proud at himself. Without saying another word he left as fast as he reappeared, leaving silence in his wake.

Tsuna stared at the door nervously. "Ha ha ha . . . Kensuke's a silly guy, isn't he?" He kept his eyes on the door because he was pretty scared on what he would find if he looked at Reborn's face.

That was when he remembered he was still leaning against Reborn's chest. So he did what any rational person would do.

He tried to get away.

 _Tried_ was the keyword here, Tsuna thought glumly, because Reborn's arms stopped him before he could.

"You need to work on your reaction time," Reborn murmured, his arms placed firmly on Tsuna's shoulders, under his chin. "If somebody attacks you, you'd be dead."

"I can normally get away," Tsuna pouted. It was true; his gut feeling or whatever would be able to save him if somebody _did_ try to attack him. It worked ninety-nine percent of the time! Apparently it failed when Reborn was involved. How coincidentally inconvenient, Tsuna cried in his head.

"Seems like you need more training." Tsuna stepped away as soon as Reborn let him go. "Make me an espresso," the man ordered.

"B-b-but I don't know —

"Experience is a valuable learning tool, _dame_ -Tsuna."

Suddenly the prospect of living in Tokyo didn't seem so bad anymore, if not for the fact Kensuke was another crazy person in his already crazy world. In the end, Tsuna was able to make a "poor excuse of an espresso" after getting hit by spoons at least a dozen times.


	20. Memories - Interlude I

_uploaded on September 17, 2015_

First interlude! This chapter contains a series of flashbacks in Tsuna's life and how he met his friends before graduating from high school. Just a little something of Tsuna's past.

Thanks for continuing to read this story and I hope you like this chapter.

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Memories**

* * *

Tsuna was five when he first met Takeshi.

He was at the park playground and wanted to ride the swings. But Mama was busy catching up with a friend and Tsuna didn't want to disturb her. So, with his bestest possible effort, he tried to climb up the swing on his own — but it kept on swinging away from him and it was really frustrating!

Tsuna felt the sting of tears at the corners of his eyes when a small, gentle hand patted him on the head.

"You want to ride the swing?" a boy spoke to him, and when Tsuna looked, the boy was a full head taller than him! Tsuna gaped in awe.

"Y-yes . . ." Tsuna mumbled meekly as he bowed down to hide his shame.

But the boy didn't tease him or called him names like the other kids; instead, he held the swing steady so Tsuna could get on it safely. At first, Tsuna thought the boy would let go of the swing when he was in the middle of riding it, but the boy only smiled at him and held the swing firmly.

 _He must be an adult,_ Tsuna's childish thinking told him.

"What's your name?" Tsuna asked when the boy willingly pushed him on the swing.

"Takeshi." Takeshi was a nice name, Tsuna thought.

"I'm Tsuna, but my Mama calls me Tsu-kun," he smiled shyly. "How old are you, Takeshi-nii-chan?"

Takeshi grinned with his teeth showing. "Five."

Tsuna's eyes widened. "F-five?! But I'm five. You're so tall! I thought you're an adult!"

"Haha, you're so silly, Tsuna!" Takeshi pushed him a little stronger. "I'm only five right now."

"T-that means we can be friends, right?!" Tsuna asked excitedly. He never had friends before and Takeshi seemed like a nice person.

Takeshi's smile grew wider as he gave him an overwhelming yes.

* * *

Tsuna later learned that Mama's friend was Takeshi's mama. They were in Namimori to visit Takeshi's papa. Takeshi lived with his mama while his papa worked in Namimori. He was just like Tsuna! Tsuna lived with Mama while Papa worked in Italia.

So that afternoon, Takeshi left with his mama, and Tsuna was not able to see him again till third grade.

* * *

Even at only eight years old, Tsuna could probably admit he had Namimori memorized at the back of his hand, or at least he memorized where the best hiding spots were. He had spent a lot of his time running and hiding from his bullies that he had learned where he would be the safest all across the town.

He had been in one of those places, which was one of his favorites, when he met a boy with short, blue hair, and the bluest blue eyes, shivering at the corner of the dilapitated building.

"Are you okay?" Tsuna asked the boy, but the boy only looked at him with a sort of resignation in his eyes. Almost instantly Tsuna felt sadness; he knew that look — he knew it was the same kind of face he made at his bullies during the times he knew he wouldn't be able to dodge or outrun them, thanks to his strange, yet accurate, gut feeling.

Tsuna didn't ask further, and instead he examined the situation. The boy was shivering, yet it was not cold; it was summer! He was also wearing clean clothes, so he couldn't had been here for very long. He looked really weak, though.

Without saying anything else, Tsuna wrapped an arm around the boy and found him to be burning hot.

"You have a fever," Tsuna exclaimed in realization. "You have to see a doctor!"

As soon as Tsuna said it, the boy cringed deeper into the corner of the room.

 _He's afraid of doctors,_ Tsuna concluded. Well, if that was the case, there was only one person who was the next best thing.

* * *

Mama took care of the boy without even asking where Tsuna found him. She was always like that anyway! Tsuna knew he could always depend on Mama when taking care of other people.

As for the boy, he didn't talk much. He didn't even change expressions much.

"What's your name?" Tsuna asked when the boy stared at his afternoon snack of pineapple juice and _dorayaki_.

"Mutsuku," the boy mumbled, finally reaching out for the dorayaki and feeling it with his fingers.

 _What a strange name,_ Tsuna thought. "I'm Tsunayoshi. But most people call me Tsuna." He opted to omit the _dame_ part of his most common nickname.

Mutsuku nodded and finally took a bite out of the dorayaki. "Delicious," he murmured, taking another bite.

Tsuna's eyes widened and he grinned. "Really?! I made it myself! My Mama taught me!"

"You like cooking?"

"Nah, only baking and making desserts," Tsuna laughed sheepishly, blushing a little bit for getting complimented. It was not everyday he received it, since he was pretty horrible at school.

Mutsuku stared at him. "Cooking and baking are different?"

Tsuna rubbed the back of his neck. "How do I say this? Um, cooking is like art, and baking is more like science! I suck at cooking which is really funny, because at school I have better grades in art than science . . ." Which was not a lot for both, Tsuna thought sorrily.

"Can I take some home? My sister would probably like it."

"Take as much as you want!" Tsuna's smile grew wider.

* * *

After Mutsuku left to go home, against Mama's protests because she said he was still not well, Tsuna had never seen Mutsuku ever again. Sometimes, Tsuna would find himself thinking back to that boy and wondering if he was okay.

* * *

It was during fifth grade when Tsuna became friends with Kyoko and Hana.

Kyoko was the kind of girl that was the stuff of dreams. Nice, very pretty, charming and overall the "perfect" kind of girl. In contrast, Hana was the smart, sensible girl that looked at everything logically, making her somewhat distant to the rest of the student body. It was a strange combination of best friends.

So, when Hana scared away the bullies that were assaulting Tsuna, and Kyoko shielded him from them, Tsuna took an instant liking to the two girls.

"I don't even know why you let them push you around," Hana berated him while Kyoko tended to his wounds.

"I-I'm _dame_ -Tsuna. It's not like I can do anything," he tried to reason out, flinching a bit at the antiseptic.

"I've seen you run away a couple of times," Kyoko pointed out.

Tsuna froze. How could he even explain when he knew he'd be able to escape or his attempt would be futile? "I get lucky sometimes." A little white lie wouldn't hurt.

"That's pathetic. No wonder you're called _dame-_ Tsuna," Hana scoffed.

"Hana-chan! Please be nice," Kyoko glared at her friend.

"Well? Where's Yamamoto?" Hana prodded on, purposely jabbing her finger on one of the sore spots on Tsuna's face.

Tsuna flinched again. "B-baseball practice. He can't be with me _all_ the time."

Hana crossed her arms. "He should, seeing they target you whenever he's not around."

"NO!" Tsuna stood up in anger, surprising both himself and the two girls. "S-sorry," he sat back down. "H-he — Takeshi already gets sad everytime this happens. I don't want to burden him any further by taking up all his time. He loves playing baseball, y-you know?" Tsuna found the anger fading away as he bowed his head and replaced with fond amusement. "I want to support his dream to be the best in Japan. If I bother him about the bullies . . ."

Tsuna looked at the two girls and was shocked; Kyoko had tears in her eyes and Hana didn't look any better.

"S-sorry!" he panicked. "D-did I say something wrong?"

Suddenly, a pair of arms wrapped themselves around his shoulders.

"I didn't know you think that way, Tsuna," Takeshi whispered from behind him, his voice quivering a bit.

Tsuna gulped. Takeshi heard all that, didn't he?

"Baseball is just a hobby for me. My best friend's well-being is more important than some sport," Takeshi chuckled, but Tsuna could tell it was strained and held back. Takeshi was _fuming_ mad, but when Tsuna turned his head to look, he had a huge grin on his face.

"B-but I want you to continue playing baseball! I'll be fine, Takeshi. Please," Tsuna begged.

"Don't worry. I'll continue playing baseball. But next time, please tell me _these_ things, Tsuna. If I hadn't forgotten my lunch bag, I wouldn't even know . . ."

Tsuna smiled. "Thank you, Takeshi."

"A-ahem," Hana coughed, her face a little red. "I have no idea you two are this close."

Tsuna turned to her and blushed himself. "W-we've known each other since we were five, so we're pretty close. Right?"

Takeshi placed his chin on Tsuna's head. "Yup! Thanks for taking care of Tsuna, by the way."

Kyoko's smiles were the stuff of legends, Tsuna mused, because it had to have some basis for it. "There was an opportunity. We always wanted to do it."

Hana looked away. "Yeah, it just so happened they crossed our paths. But," she uncrossed her arms and pointed a finger at Tsuna, "We're going to work on your _dame_ -ness, Sawada Tsunayoshi. I can't stand lameness!"

"That means she's really worried about you," Kyoko giggled.

"Kyoko-chan, NO. The bullies are a bunch of monkeys and you know I hate monkeys."

"That means she's really, _really_ worried," Kyoko's giggles were a little louder, that turned into playful shrieks when Hana decided to chase her around the classroom.

* * *

The next day after that, three of the bullies were absent, one managed to go with a broken leg, another two had bruises all over and the ringleader pulled out of school.

Takeshi only gave him smiles and grins throughout the day and Hibari Kyouya, who was normally out patrolling the grounds, had stared at him during lunch.

Tsuna didn't want to know what happened.

* * *

There was a time when Tsuna was nine where he found himself walking along Namimori River.

Then, under the bridge, he found a little kid with the wildest, craziest hair, crying his eyes out.

"A-are you lost?" Tsuna approached the kid, who seemed to wail harder. "D-don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you!"

"M-m-mama says I shouldn't trust strangers," the kid spoke, but his voice was shaking from crying.

"And that's right. I'm Tsuna. What's your name?" Tsuna tried to placate the little boy, who, thankfully, was sobbing less now.

"Mama says I shouldn't give my name," the kid continued, his cries reduced to whimpers.

Tsuna laughed sheepishly. "That's also right. What do you want to be called?"

That question seemed to be the right one, because in an instant the kid's face lit up. "You can call me the Great Lord Master!"

Tsuna giggled. "Okay then, Great Lord Master. Are you lost?" He held out a hand, hoping the Great Lord Master will take it — he did. Tsuna helped him up and they stepped away from under the bridge and back to the walkway.

"I don't know," he finally replied once they were a fair distance away from the bridge.

Tsuna stopped. He was planning on taking him to a police station so they could look for his parents. He was a little kid himself so he didn't know much about these things! How would he respond to that?

"You don't know?" Tsuna echoed him, and the Great Lord Master nodded.

"I've never been here before. N-namimori?"

Tsuna paled and a cold surge suddenly swept through him. What if, what if he was kidnapped and he escaped?! Or he was purposely dropped off here to be lost?! Or he was in an accident or he ran away, or or or —

"Oi! You little brat! I told you to stay in the car!"

Tsuna's eyes widened. Here's the kidnapper —

When Tsuna turned around, he found a very beautiful girl with long, pink hair and wearing the Namimori Middle uniform. So . . . maybe she wasn't a kidnapper?

"Bian-nee!" Great Lord Master wailed, but didn't let go of Tsuna's hand.

 _Bian-nee_ bowed low before him and Tsuna panicked. A middle-schooler bowing down to a grade-schooler?! "Thank you for looking out for the little brat. He didn't bother you, did he?"

Tsuna's cheeks flushed with shyness. "N-no. He's very behaved."

Bian-nee bowed again. "Thank you again. It's our first time here in Namimori. I actually just enrolled in school." She gestured to her uniform. "I just wore it because I love it so much." She then turned to the Great Lord Master, who was now hidden halfway behind Tsuna. "Let's go. Your Haya-nii is very worried."

"Haya-nii is an _aho,_ " but the Great Lord Master let go of Tsuna's hand anyway and went over to her side. But before they left, he faced Tsuna with a grin. "I'll _never_ forget you, Tsuna-nii!" He waved as he walked away along with Bian-nee.

Tsuna waved back and was saddened a bit when he realized he didn't get to know the Great Lord Master's real name.

* * *

On the first day of the first year of middle school, Tsuna met a really strange girl.

She went at the opening ceremony bearing fireworks and wearing a full-fledged Samurai armor because she believed that was how opening ceremonies were celebrated. When she was scolded about her fireworks and was asked to step out the auditorium, she complied, but a little bit afterwards they heard fireworks go off from outside.

She was Haru and she became Tsuna's classmate.

"How do you keep your hair that way?" was her first sentence spoken to him during their first lunch break.

"Uh, ehh . . . it's natural?" Tsuna tried, pulling his hair a bit in awkwardness.

"Hahi! Haru is envious," she pouted, gesturing to her own hair. "Haru has to keep her hair tied up since it's very messy!"

"But my hair is messy too?" Tsuna was confused.

"It's messy in a cute kind of way. It's fluffy!" She poked at it and pressed it, then grinned in delight when it sprung buck up after she removed her hand. "Haru is Haru's name," she introduced herself, in a weird, third-person kind of way.

"Tsuna," he returned with a smile, and he could see Haru's cheeks turn red.

* * *

Apparently, along with being eccentric, Haru was also clumsy. When she fell into the pool while wearing the armor (Tsuna didn't know why she was standing near the pool in the first place), it hadn't even taken Tsuna one second to throw all caution out the window and launch himself after her. Tsuna didn't even know how to swim!

But for some reason his gut feeling guided him and he was able to pull her up and out of the pool.

Afterwards, Haru had declared that her lifelong dream was to become Tsuna's wife.

For some reason, it didn't sit well with Kyoko and Hana (although they became close friends in the end. Closer than between Haru and Tsuna, in fact). It was even worse for Takeshi, to the point he didn't talk to her until second term.

Haru had also told him she was being haunted by the ghost of the undying black cloak, but Tsuna perfectly knew who it was. He just didn't have the guts to tell her the truth, because finding out the truth was worse than thinking it was a ghost.

* * *

Surprisingly, Tsuna knew Ryohei even before he became friends with Kyoko.

It was early morning and Tsuna was on an errand for his mom when he found an older boy sprawled on the ground.

"Hiee!" Tsuna shrieked in surprise when he almost stepped on the boy on his way to the convenience store. "Are you okay?!"

"I'm alive!" the boy laughed, punching the air. "Just resting to the extreme!"

 _It's Sasagawa Ryohei, Sasagawa Kyoko's brother, captain of the boxing club,_ his mind had thought then.

"O-oh, well," Tsuna coughed lamely, stepping back, "Maybe you should rest in a safer place. Like your house. Not on the road!"

"But my house is too far away," Sasagawa Ryohei explained seriously as if that justified him lying down on the dirty pavement.

Tsuna didn't think twice. "My house is just over there?" he pointed at the building behind him.

Nana welcomed Sasagawa Ryohei instantly.

* * *

"When you enter middle school, you should join the boxing club," Onii-chan told him while lying down on the couch. He already felt at home in Tsuna's house it seemed, Tsuna thought with amusement.

Tsuna shrugged. "I don't think I'm good enough for the club." Onii-chan looked dejected then, so Tsuna quickly added, "I-I do want to learn combat, though!"

"Self-defense combat?" Onii-chan clarified that Tsuna flinched; so, even Sasagawa Ryohei, who was mostly busy being energetic and cheery, knew about the bullies harassing him at school and _outside_ of school. Tsuna nodded without hesitation. Onii-chan was all smiles as he sat up. "Good enough for me! You don't even need to sign up for the club. Just meet me at the park every week on Sunday morning. In fact, do you want to start now?!"

"B-b-but we got school later —

Onii-chan suddenly threw a punch that Tsuna quickly dodged.

"Eep!"

"Very good reflexes," Onii-chan nodded in approval. "Let's start this coming Sunday."

And that was how Tsuna became friends with Ryohei, how Ryohei got to know Takeshi, how Tsuna learned hand-to-hand combat, and how Ryohei got harassed by Hibari Kyouya.

* * *

Tsuna never used his "self-defense" skills for self-defense though. Despite knowing combat, he never retaliated against his bullies. He mostly just dodged and if he couldn't, he tried to block most of it. But of course, most of the time quantity outclassed him and he would get beaten to a pulp.

Unless he escaped, which was what he always aimed for. Tsuna never liked direct confrontation.

There was a time when the bullies decided to corner him even though Takeshi was with him. He didn't know how it happened, but the next thing he knew, the bullies were all running away in fear with one or two of them unconscious on the ground. Takeshi's uniform was a little rumpled and he had a cut on his lower lip.

Tsuna's eyes widened at the sight of blood.

Takeshi smiled. "Lip cuts are no big deal —

Tsuna reached up and wiped the blood off with his thumb. Takeshi flinched at the contact, but made no mention of it otherwise.

"Please don't let yourself get hurt because of me," Tsuna pleaded, bowing down his head. If it was just him, he could take the injuries, but Takeshi was a different matter!

Tsuna had sensed Takeshi's rage then. For such a calm person, he held so much repressed anger that was invisible to everyone except to Tsuna. His mask of happiness was effective.

After Takeshi reassured him that he was fine, and that he had forgotten something back at school, Tsuna went home alone that day.

It was the first and last time any group of bullies decided to target Tsuna while Yamamoto Takeshi was with him.


	21. Battles

_uploaded on September 19, 2015_

Thank you so much for the wonderful response to the interlude! I had wanted to put a bit of backstory to the characters but I guess that only raised a few more questions. Oh and Kyouya had his flashback scene in the "Research" chapter (11).

Since the previous chapter wasn't _really_ a chapter (I think?) here's the actual story continuation.

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Battles**

* * *

Tsuna was busy wiping the silverware when the store entrance slammed open. Why did people love doing that? Tsuna would never know. He was positive one of these days that door would fall over from all the abuse.

"I'm looking for a man named Reborn, kora," the man who entered the shop exclaimed, going straight for Tsuna's counter. Tsuna instantly noticed his "wild" persona as the guy ran a hand through his blond hair; to think such a person was friendly with a _sophisticated_ man like Reborn, it made Tsuna giggle a little.

"He stepped out for lunch," Tsuna explained, going back to his spoons.

The man stayed rooted on his spot for several seconds without saying anything. Tsuna was about to ask if he wanted to wait for Reborn when the man placed a hand on the counter.

"Hey, answer me this, Tsuna," Tsuna then noticed his blue eyes glance at his name tag, which was weird, because the guy said his name _then_ looked at the tag? "Do you own this place?"

Tsuna shook his head meekly. "I'm just a cashier."

The guy nodded, placing his fingers under his chin in contemplation. "And Reborn works here? As?"

Tsuna stared at him in disbelief. He just looked for Reborn and now he wasn't sure about that? Clearly he was in the right place since Tsuna was able to answer him about Reborn's whereabouts and — it was futile to think about this. Tsuna sighed in his head. "Yes, Reborn is a barista."

Tsuna saw the widest smirk on this man's face. "A _barista_?!" Then he laughed. He laughed so hard it was echoing inside the shop. Tsuna didn't know what was funny about being a barista. "Sorry, sorry," the man apologized as soon as he calmed down and reduced to snickering, cradling his head with one hand, "It's just, Reborn, a barista, it's just a funny image kora!"

"Okay," Tsuna deposited the spoons back to their proper place before fully facing the guy. "I don't know how close you are with Reborn, but I would like you to know that he makes one of the best coffee I've ever tasted. I also don't know what's exactly funny about being a barista. Anyway, I don't prefer to talk about him behind his back, so please, if you want to wait for him when he gets back from lunch, let me know."

Well _that_ certainly stopped the guy from laughing. When it sunk in for Tsuna, all the pent-up confidence went down the drain and he flushed in embarrassment. Did he just defend Reborn from some random guy? He couldn't explain it but with the way the man was laughing, he could tell it was in ridicule and that kind of pissed him off. Pissed him off a bit too much.

But the man wasn't mad or insulted or even irritated. Tsuna gauged the guy's reaction to his scolding and was met with a warm smile. Tsuna couldn't help but blush even brighter.

"I can see now why Reborn prefers to work here as a barista," the guy chuckled, watching Tsuna thoughtfully. "The name's Colonnello, kora."

"W-well then, Colonnello," Tsuna coughed into his fist, gesturing to the tables in the shop, "Would you like to wait for Reborn?"

Colonnello's smirk widened as he leaned over Tsuna's counter. "I changed my mind, kora."

Tsuna tentatively took a step back, face getting redder when the guy in front of him refused to break eye contact. If the guy wasn't leaving yet but he wouldn't wait for Reborn, then . . . "Would you like some cake?" Tsuna smiled, suddenly remembering he was here in Kawahira's Baked Goodies as a freaking cashier and his purpose was to sell stuff and not get intimidated with random good-looking guys.

Colonnello laughed again, but this time Tsuna knew he was trying his best not to when he covered the lower half of his face. "Oh man," he choked back a snicker, finally looking away, "I bet Reborn's having a hard time with you, huh."

This guy had no reservations at all. "What is that supposed to mean?" Tsuna pouted. "I know I'm a bit slow sometimes, but I'm always trying my best . . . Reborn's just a really strict guy. I think I'm improving well with my training!"

Colonnello was now clutching his stomach from too much laughing, leaning the rest of his weight on the counter. "Oh god, you, Reborn, everything is just too damn funny!" Tsuna watched him attempt to regain his composure and failing when he even just glanced at his face. His face wasn't _that_ funny, was it?

As if Colonnello heard his unspoken question, he leaned closer to his face again, tapping a finger on his cheek. "Too cute, kora," the guy grinned when Tsuna's face shone like a bright red tomato. "And Reborn's keeping you all to himself. That sneaky bastard."

Tsuna frowned. "Nobody's keeping me."

"I would."

Tsuna's life-saving gut intuition suddenly flared to life, putting his awareness on high alert. _Step back!_

Tsuna stepped back. At the next second, Colonnello fell over the counter.

"W-what are you doing? This area's for employees only!" Tsuna panicked, moving to pull the guy up from the floor and ultimately push him back to the other side of the counter.

As soon as Tsuna's hand touched Colonnello's, everything went in a blur; the guy pulled him down on the floor and he landed straight on the guy's lap. When did he even sit up?! "Got ya, kora."

"C-Colonnello —

"I just had my lunch and I would hate to lose it," Reborn's voice came from behind them while Tsuna felt Colonnello's body freeze. "What the hell are you doing here, Colonnello?"

"Reborn!" The guy laughed, his hold on Tsuna getting a little tighter. "Look what I got!"

"Let go of the cashier, idiot."

"The _cashier_? Oh man. Tsuna has you whipped kora!"

" _Nobody_ 's whipped!" Tsuna interrupted, face getting redder even more. He was sure the term "whipped" didn't even apply in this context. "Please let me go, Colonnello."

The guy didn't need another telling when he put both of his arms up, releasing Tsuna. Tsuna immediately scampered away while he found Reborn crouched behind Colonnello, holding a thing that looked dangerously like a freaking _gun_ that was pressed against Colonnello's nape.

Tsuna pointed a shaky finger at the thing. "I-i-is that a gun?!"

Reborn glanced at him calmly. "It's something of an effective bargaining tool."

 _Everyone's crazy!_ Tsuna backed himself up against the wall, as close as possible to the kitchen door just in case he needed to shout out for Uncle Kawahira.

"I'm leaving," Colonnello announced, his arms still up as he stood up from the floor. Reborn followed suit to keep the _thing_ trained on his neck. "Stop pointing that thing at me, kora."

"Ah, you're right. I'm overestimating you," Reborn quipped, stashing the thing somewhere within his clothes when Colonnello reached out to punch Reborn, but the man was fast enough to dodge the attack. "Too slow, Colonnello."

"NO FIGHTING!" Tsuna yelled from his little spot, but when the two men glanced at him he quickly bowed down his head in embarrassment.

Reborn pointed at the door. "You heard him. No fighting in the shop. So let's take this outside."

"No! Reborn! You're an employee, don't engage in fights with the customers!"

"This idiot is not a customer, Tsuna."

"AH!" the guy exclaimed, grinning all the while. "I remembered! I need to order one whole Heavenly Sky cake!" He glanced at Reborn who was now glaring at him with murderous intent. "Orders from Lal, Reborn," Colonnello smirked.

Reborn sneered. "Get your cake and get out."

* * *

"So . . . Reborn."

"Hm."

"That Colonnello guy."

"Hm."

"I don't really get it. Is he your friend?"

"Huh. Friends."

"Okay, well, you tried to kill each other so I guess not?"

"He won't be able to kill me even in a different universe."

"Uh, okay. That's a strange way to put it. Shouldn't it be, 'even in a thousand years'?"

"Pedantic."

"Fine. Whatever. Just don't pull out weapons in the shop. It reflects badly on us."

"Tsuna."

"Yes?"

"You seem to have forgotten. The guy assaulted you."

"Yeah but I could have taken care of it by myself —

"You couldn't even brew a passable espresso."

"Making coffee and defending myself are different!"

"I think making horrible coffee would reflect worse on you since you work for a cake shop that sells coffee. Combat skills are irrelevant."

"You . . . I hate you."

"You _hate_ me? For pointing out your flawed thinking?"

"No, no. You're right. I agree. But I still hate you."

"What are you waiting for then? Make me an espresso."

* * *

"G-good evening," Enma's voice sounded through the door.

Tsuna was all smiles when he saw the guy waiting by the door, as if he was hesitant to enter the shop. "Enma! Come in!"

Enma carefully made his way to the counter, his eyes wandering around the shop before they landed on Tsuna. "This is a very strange place."

"Most people say that," Tsuna laughed, scratching the back of his head. "What would you like?"

Enma turned to the display case next to the counter, but he suddenly froze when his eyes focused at Tsuna's side. Curious, Tsuna glanced at the same direction and he found Reborn standing next to him, observing Enma.

"Ah! This is Reborn," Tsuna gestured to the man, who nodded at Enma. "Reborn, this is Enma. He's my friend."

"H-he works _here_?" Enma stuttered, glancing back and forth between Tsuna and Reborn.

Tsuna raised en eyebrow. "Yes . . . he's the barista. Is there something wrong?"

"Nothing . . . oh, can I have this one?"

Tsuna's feelings were still disturbed even as he tried to ignore Enma's reaction to Reborn, and Reborn's extra careful observation of Enma.

* * *

"He bought something from the convenience store once," Enma mumbled in between cake, careful to keep his voice down while Reborn tended the counter by himself. Tsuna was seated across him at his table. "I remember because during the whole transaction, he kept his eyes on me. Not on the thing I'm doing . . . but on _me_. It was . . . uncomfortable, to say the least."

Tsuna laughed quietly. "Yeah, he does have the tendency to do that. At this point I'd say it's normal behavior for him."

"You're a good guy, Tsuna," Enma smiled, taking another bite of his cake.

Tsuna was caught off-guard. "W-what's with the sudden compliment?"

Enma blushed as if he himself was caught off-guard with his own actions. "Um, I just, I needed to say it," he mumbled, bowing down his head.

Tsuna felt a warm string of fuzziness flutter inside him. "Thank you, Enma. I think you're a good person too."

"I'm not so sure about that myself . . ."

"What do you mean?"

"Um," Enma glanced away from him, his face now fully red. Tsuna suddenly felt the need to follow suit, so he turned his head as well and immediately regretted his decision when he found the rest of the room watching them.

"H-hey, what's up?" he smiled at the other customers.

"Just fine, Tsunayoshi. Thanks for asking," Shouichi smiled back.

"Fine for me too, _cielo_ ," Spanner nodded.

"I think we picked the wrong time, Kaki-pi," Ken grumbled at Chikusa who only glanced away in response. On another hand, Lancia was staring at Tsuna with strong intent while M.M. kept waving at him and blowing him kisses.

On one corner of the room, Kusakabe was writing down something on his little notebook.

Tsuna hid his face in his hand, looking away from the rest of the room to the window next to their table, and promptly blanched when he saw Fran — wearing his "Varia" office uniform rather than Cafe Illusione's — about to enter the shop. The Varia weren't around, were they? Tsuna was already dreading the chaos about to happen if they _were_ around.

"Are you okay, Tsuna? You look pale," Enma reached out a hand to touch Tsuna's cheek.

For some reason, it felt really warm and comfy for Tsuna that he unconsciously leaned against it. "Yeah, I'm okay Enma. Just dreading the incoming chaos."

"Chaos —

Apparently the Varia weren't needed to incite one.

* * *

"I got rid of all of them," it was Reborn's voice who greeted him as soon as his eyes fluttered open. He found the staff room's ceiling first before his eyes settled on Reborn, who was looking down at him upside-down.

"What happened?" he groaned, his voice slightly creaky.

"There was a fight. It escalated. You panicked — you need to work on that, by the way — and tried to stop them, but you got hit on the head."

Tsuna almost cried. Didn't the very same thing happen before?!

"Long story short, I got rid of all of them."

"B-but the shop —

"Nothing was destroyed."

"I mean if we're both here, who's tending the register? Uncle Kawahira?"

"Tsuna . . ."

"Well? What time is it anyway?" Tsuna tried to look for a clock, then remembered he always had his phone in his pocket. He was about to reach for it when Reborn's larger hand held his wrist.

"You're a hardworker, Tsuna. Very impressive for a boss."

"I'm not a boss," Tsuna frowned.

"Though sometimes, there should be limitations. You fainted. I think it's defensible to say you need to rest and forget about the shop for a few hours."

Tsuna remained silent for a few moments before nodding. "Fine. You have a point."

Reborn nodded too. "That said, if you feel fine now, I would appreciate it if you could sit up. My legs feel numb."

That was when Tsuna realized he was lying down on the staff room couch and using Reborn's lap as his pillow. Panicking, he quickly sat up and quickly regretted it when vertigo hit him from the action.

As he held his head in his hand, he guessed he was still not one-hundred-percent recovered so he'd better be careful with his movements. He fished for his phone from his pocket to check the time and found it was ten-twenty-seven in the evening.

When Enma arrived it was around six . . . the shop closed at seven. So they were stuck at the staff room for maybe four hours now.

Tsuna turned around to thank Reborn for staying with him, but the guy already left.

* * *

That man was a complete enigma, Tsuna pouted as he made his way home. Did he intentionally leave at the last minute, knowing it was the last shift for the week so Tsuna would not be able to thank him until Monday, leaving Tsuna to wallow in guilt for the whole weekend? It was too farfetched but considering the events for the past month and so, Tsuna already believed anything was possible. Maybe even magic and time travel and alternate universes.

Sighing, he said hi to Bel who was leaning against a lone street lamp before turning at the corner.

As soon as he stepped in front of their gate, Tsuna could already hear a ruckus happening inside the house.

Tsuna paled when he heard "Tsuna-sama" and "hahahas" coming from inside. He knew those voices.

Maybe he would sleep in a hotel tonight.


	22. Exposition

_uploaded on September 26, 2015_

Thanks to all those who are reading still. I am very sorry for this chapter. It's just . . . it's just pure crack.

Please enjoy . . .

* * *

 **Exposition**

* * *

When Tsuna entered the Sawada Residence, the loud ruckus he heard before suddenly stopped, and when he went to the living room to look for his mom, he found her sitting at the couch.

With Hayato on her right and Takeshi on her left.

"Welcome home, Tsu-kun!" she grinned. Tsuna noticed she had her arms linked to the two guys to keep them in place.

"G-good evening, Tsuna-sama!" Hayato bowed.

"Good evening, Tsuna!" Takeshi laughed.

Tsuna escaped to his bedroom.

* * *

"Why did you suddenly run off, Tsu-kun? It's rude to leave your guests hanging!"

Tsuna dropped his head on the kitchen table. "I'm just tired, mom . . . " He opted not to say anything about the fainting earlier that day (when people went berserk in the cake shop for some reason and accidentally hit him on the head) because he knew his mom would make a huge fuss about it, which would also probably incite the two guys who were sitting at the kitchen table with him.

"I was really worried, Tsuna-sama," Hayato bowed low, his forehead almost touching the table, "It's already very late and you were still not home."

Tsuna raised his head. "I had to clean up — what?"

Hayato looked at him with earnest. "I know you always get home at around seven-thirty. Seven-fifty if you pass by the convenience store. Eight o'clock if you pass by the supermarket. Sometimes eight-thirty if you're buying a lot of groceries. But it's already ten o'clock and you're still not home and that's when I decided to go here myself —

"H-how do you know these things? Do you keep a live video feed of my house? Ha ha ha . . ."

Hayato didn't reply.

Tsuna felt his headache worsen. He wanted to lock himself in his bedroom and cry to sleep and never exit ever again.

"Why is this guy here anyway, Tsuna?" Takeshi brought him back to reality.

But before Tsuna could answer, Hayato stood up from his chair. "I'm Tsuna-sama's protector and I will do everything in my power to protect him!"

"Oh, how romantic!" Nana giggled. Tsuna hid his face in his hand.

"And why are _you_ here?" Hayato countered, glaring straight at the guy sitting across him. "You didn't even bother changing out of your culinary uniform."

"I was so excited to get home haha!" Takeshi laughed. "But I went straight for Tsuna's house."

"Takeshi-kun is Tsu-kun's best friend," Nana decided to share this information for some reason. But deep inside, Tsuna knew when it came to his mom, it was _never_ "for some reason". There would always be an underlying, mischievous cause for everything she did involving him and Tsuna rarely liked it. "They've known each other since they're little kids. Tsu-kun only had a few friends because little kids can be cruel like that, but Takeshi-kun was always there for him to protect him too. So I guess you're both Tsu-kun's protectors, huh?"

Well that silenced the three of them. Tsuna was already considering making a run for it when Nana grabbed his arm.

"Have you eaten dinner yet, Tsu-kun?" Nana smiled.

Tsuna gulped.

* * *

"I never realized Mama can be scary," Takeshi concluded as they sat on the porch, cooling off with the nighttime air and drinking hot tea.

"You have no idea," Tsuna sighed, taking a sip of his tea.

"I rather like her," Hayato announced.

"She's really nice. She gave me grape juice. I love grapes," Lambo agreed.

Tsuna had always wondered why they had grape juice recently — then he almost spat out his tea. "L-Lambo?! What are you doing here?"

"I want to visit Tsuna-nii," he answered with disbelief as if it was the most obvious answer in the world. He drank his glass of grape juice while Tsuna stared at him in shock.

"But it's eleven-thirty in the evening and —

Hayato quickly stood up from the porch and pointed an accusatory finger at Lambo. "Oi, you stupid brat. What the hell are you doing here?!"

Lambo jumped up too and pointed at him. "I could say the same to you, Haya-nii!"

"Shouldn't little brats be sleeping right now?!"

"Shouldn't you be sleeping too since you have a performance tomorrow?! I'm going to tell Bian-nee!"

" _Maa maa,_ let's talk about this calmly —

"And why should I listen to you, you stupid _wakiita_?!"

"Hey! Don't talk to Takeshi-nii like that! What if you make him mad?! I won't get my free sushi!"

"Don't worry Lambo, I won't get mad."

Tsuna had already scooted at the corner of the porch while drinking his tea. The stars looked beautiful tonight, he mused. He could stare at the stars forever if that was what it took to block out the shenanigans happening beside him. Maybe it wasn't too late to escape and sleep at a hotel. He had some money in his pocket right now, he had his card too, maybe he could just find an ATM —

The glass door to the porch slid open.

"It's getting late, why don't you all go inside?" Nana's sweet voice echoed through the night.

 _There's no escape,_ Tsuna realized as he paled at the sight of Nana's smile.

* * *

"So . . . you all know each other?"

Takeshi rubbed the back of his neck. "They're regular customers of Take Sushi."

Hayato crossed his arms and huffed away from Takeshi. "I'm not even fond of sushi! It's because this stupid brat likes to drag us to that place."

"You're stupid to not like sushi, Haya-nii," Lambo frowned, then turned to Tsuna. "I'm Haya-nii's foster brother."

 _Foster brother._ Now that was something unexpected for Tsuna. His head was starting to hurt even worse than before, so he held his head and closed his eyes. "Okay. So Hayato and Lambo are foster brothers and you're both regular customers of Takeshi's."

"And I'm Lambo's teacher. Oh! And I taught you hand-to-hand combat!"

Tsuna tried his best to maintain his composure. "Ryohei . . . what are you doing?"

"Aren't we doing introductions?" Ryohei turned to Hayato. "And I know this guy. He was pretty famous in my university since he was one of the youngest students there."

 _It's a dream . . . it's a dream,_ Tsuna chanted in his head.

"Ara?" Nana peeked through Tsuna's bedroom door with a big smile on her face. "Are you having a sleepover, Tsu-kun?"

Hayato's eyes widened. "C-c-can I sleep over, Tsuna-sama?!"

"I want to join too!" Lambo exclaimed.

Ryohei pumped his fist into the air. "I extremely _love_ sleepovers!"

"I'll always sleep here if Tsuna allows me," Takeshi laughed.

Then the window to Tsuna's bedroom opened with Kyouya stepping inside gracefully. As graceful as one could be while breaking into somebody else's house.

"I hate crowding . . . but I will make an exception tonight," Kyouya announced.

Tsuna glared at his mom, who only hid her mouth in her hand as she closed the door, leaving him to deal with all this trouble alone. He suddenly felt he should have stayed at the cake shop staff room and slept on the couch till morning, but with the way things were going, these guys would've found a way to break into the cake shop anyway.

* * *

"H-hey! Whose hand was that?!" Tsuna swatted a hand away from him as he curled deeper into a ball on his bed.

"That wasn't me, Tsuna-nii, I promise!" Lambo called near the foot of his bed.

Takeshi chuckled as he scooted closer to Tsuna. "Doing it like this is very nostalgic, haha! Right, Ryohei?"

"Right, but we were younger then so we all fit okay on the bed."

"You slept like this before?!" Hayato seemed scandalized from the sound of his voice.

Takeshi answered him. "Yep. Hibari joined us a few times." Kyouya didn't deny it because it was true.

"Kufufu. I am very sorry Tsunayoshi-kun. That was my hand."

"W-when did you even get here Mukuro — okay. That's it. Everybody off the bed."

"Tsuna-sama —

"NOW."

* * *

Tsuna's furniture were pushed against the wall so there would be enough space on the floor. Enough _futon_ were laid out, the amount not that surprising for Tsuna since they _did_ have several sleepovers when he was younger.

Before anybody got to pick out their futon, Tsuna decided to make a declaration first. "Look, guys. Honestly, I just want to sleep. I had a rather stressful day."

"That much I heard," Mukuro chuckled.

"Do you know _something,_ pineapple-head?" Hayato scowled at the guy who happily returned the glare.

"It is obviously none of your concern unless Tsunayoshi-kun states otherwise," he scoffed, leaving Hayato to fume in silence.

Tsuna tactfully avoided their topic and focused on his. "Before anything else happens, I want to know how _you_ guys know each other. It feels like I'm the only one left out of the loop."

Hayato bowed low. "I am very sorry, Tsuna-sama! I didn't intend to deceive you! I don't know about these idiots but I certainly did not!"

"Is this the part where we introduce ourselves again?" Ryohei asked.

Tsuna closed his eyes as he leant on his desk. "A brief overview would be nice. I know I won't be able to sleep because I'm curious and it plagues my mind. Except Kyouya because everybody in Namimori knows him."

Kyouya scoffed and muttered something like, "They better."

* * *

When all was said and done, it was finally time to sleep. In the end, Tsuna ended up using the futon in the middle of the bunch of it, but did he expect anything less? As they drifted off to sleep one by one, Tsuna found himself having the time to mull over the revelations tonight.

Takeshi knew about Hayato and Lambo since they were regular customers of Take Sushi. He knew Mukuro as a "fellow" business proprietor in Namimori.

Ryohei knew Hayato because they studied in the same university, and in his words, Hayato was pretty well-known for graduating as one of the youngest students. He knew Mukuro because Ryohei was a regular customer of Cafe Illusione.

Lambo was friends with Chrome because of an interschool event between Namimori and Kokuyo. That also meant Chrome was friends with I-Pin and Fuuta, too. Then Chrome introduced him to her older brother which Lambo deeply regretted.

Kyouya just knew everybody that stepped on Namimori soil.

Mukuro was a fan of classical music, apparently, and that was how he knew Hayato.

Hayato was also a customer of Cafe Illusione because his older sister loved their pastries. Hayato had also recalled that Ryohei was famous in their university too for being so loud with his boxing club.

Tsuna stared at the ceiling. Was this some kind of advanced and complicated trickery? He did admit earlier he would believe anything was possible now because of the craziness of everything, but this kind of information was still shocking. It was just . . . too convenient to be true! He didn't have to worry about introducing them to one another since they all knew each other anyway.

And that kind of saddened him a bit. He really was the _only one_ left out!

Tsuna mused that in the end, cake did bring people together. Who knew?

* * *

When Tsuna woke up on Saturday morning, everybody had went off. He glanced at the clock in his room and he found it was actually afternoon.

His mom told him they all left for different reasons: Hayato had his piano recital, Takeshi wanted to help his dad with the shop, Lambo had to go home with Hayato, Kyouya had his patrols, Ryohei had his regular training and Mukuro had his cafe to run. They also all agreed not to wake Tsuna up since he did look too tired and stressed the night before.

At least they noticed that.

Tsuna still hadn't recovered, to be honest; his usual strength seemed to be missing and he didn't feel like leaving the house at all. Which was very okay for Nana as she fussed over him and coddled him like a little kid. Tsuna didn't complain this time — he loved getting pampered once in a while, so he let his mom do whatever she wanted as he lazed around the house.

He was watching the animated version of the Yakuza manga he was following when he realized there were camera sounds. He turned his head to find his mom taking pictures of him.

"Mom . . . what are you doing?"

Nana held a hand over her heart. "You're growing up too fast, Tsu-kun. So I'm doing my best to document it." She took another picture as she said that.

"I'm already nineteen. I think I grew up long ago," Tsuna deadpanned.

Nana smiled, wagging her finger. "People don't just stop growing. Besides, you look cute right now, it would be a waste not to take a picture!"

Tsuna glared at her mockingly. "You have a skewed sense of cuteness so I don't trust your judgement." Another shutter sound. "MOM."

"It's for safekeeping!" She turned her phone around to show him the photos she took. "My beloved Tsu-kun. Isn't he so cute?"

"Mom, _I'm Tsu-kun_ ," but Tsuna looked anyway and almost threw the remote in response.

He was staring at the television, one hand supporting the side of his head as he leant against the couch arm. He didn't bother changing out of his pajamas but he regretted it now; he only realized it was unbuttoned all the way, revealing a good amount of torso with one of the sleeves hanging off his shoulder. His pants were loose too, but he had his legs sprawled all over the couch while his other arm clutched a pillow tightly on his lap.

It looked far from _cute_. It looked _lewd_!

Tsuna looked away and tried to hide his blushing face by burying his head into the pillow. "Please delete that picture."

"I don't think so."

"Mama, _please_ ," Tsuna pleaded, looking up at her with his best puppy-dog eyes. It was always effective against his mom.

Nana relented. "Okay, Tsu-kun. I will delete this picture from my phone." She pressed a few buttons and then showed him the gallery thumbnails. The photo was deleted. Nodding to herself, she excused herself and skipped upstairs.

With the way she responded so specifically, that already meant she had several backups stored in different devices. Maybe even online. Why did he even teach her how to use the computer and how to sync devices?

Tsuna was doomed.


	23. Suffering

_uploaded on October 3, 2015_

Thanks to everyone who got through until this chapter. I still can't believe people are actually enjoying this silly story. Thanks again for all the funny reviews and for the love!

Nana is a real menace.

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Suffering**

* * *

Things were blurry and there was a feeling of pain, Tsuna mused, as he closed his eyes to block out the light. Tsuna could tell he was unrestricted but he couldn't move his body, no matter how much he willed it to. Everything felt too heavy, too hot and too cold at the same time. He tried to open his eyes but the light blinded him that he closed them again on instinct.

He hated being sick.

Nana's motherly instincts were on point when she suddenly burst into his room and gasped.

"I knew there was a reason you didn't do your morning run," he heard her voice as he felt her go closer, then with a dip on his bed, a hand touched his forehead. "Burning hot," she announced. A few more seconds passed by before she spoke up again, "Were you sick all this time, Tsu-kun? When you came home last Friday?"

Tsuna tried his best to nod.

"And it got worse." Tsuna could hear the worry from his mom's voice and it was comforting in an odd, funny way. Not that he wanted to worry his mother or anything, but the thought that somebody would be distressed enough because of him was very heartwarming. "You should have told me sooner, Tsuna."

"I didn't want to worry you," Tsuna murmured as he kept his eyes closed. He also tried to even his breathing, but it only came out labored and very annoying.

"Growing up too fast," Nana mumbled, then Tsuna felt the dip disappear from his bed. "I will call Kawahira-san and tell him you won't be able to do your cake delivery today."

 _Oh crap._ Today was Sunday and he had to deliver the weekly cake to the Varia. But if he couldn't do it, then who would —

 _Reborn._

It was not yet time for the world to end.

Tsuna quickly tried to get out of bed but his mom pushed him back.

"Please stay on your bed, Tsu-kun!" his mom scolded him, tucking him inside his blanket.

"B-b-but — there will be bloodshed," he whined, already fearing the possibilities.

"You _will_ stay in your room, Sawada Tsunayoshi! Please let your Mama take care of you." She pulled out her phone from her pocket and exited the room.

He would be forever powerless against his mom, he thought in resignation as he sunk deeper into his bed, eyes closed to savor the moment, the comfort welcoming him and taking over him. He almost forgot Reborn would be responsible for delivering the cake to the Varia since he was unavailable. Ah, well, maybe the Varia would have a lunch meeting like they usually did on a Sunday, then Reborn wouldn't have to meet them personally? Uncle Kawahira also made good judgement calls so maybe Tsuna could trust him to make the decision?

Nana returned from wherever she came from. "Kawahira-san said 'get well soon, Tsuna-kun. I know you're worried about the cake delivery. Don't worry about it'."

Uncle Kawahira did have the ability to read minds.

His mom then attached a fever pad on his forehead. "Don't take this off."

"Mom, seriously."

"I mean you used to do it when you were younger. You hated things placed on your forehead."

It _was_ beginning to irritate him, but Tsuna persevered. He's a grown-up nineteen-year-old, he wouldn't be defeated by a freaking fever pad.

"I'm going out for a bit so I can cook you some congee. Chicken?"

Tsuna smiled and nodded, and taking it as her cue, Nana left the room.

A minute later, Tsuna heard his mom's voice reaching his bedroom from outside. "Oh, poor Tsu-kun! He's very sick! You're right Asari-san, he rarely gets sick. But when he does, oh he looks so vulnerable and cute at the same time I just want to hug him. But I can't because he's sick. Yes, Tsu-kun is indeed a cutie isn't he? Thanks for listening, Asari-san. I'm going out for a bit so Tsuna is alone right now. Can you keep an eye out . . . oh, you're also going to the supermarket? Why don't we go together? This is a safe neighborhood anyway, I don't know what I'm thinking."

Tsuna thought he became even more sick when he heard that. Sometimes his mom could be so embarrassing. He didn't even know who that person was! _Asari?_ Maybe it was a new neighbor.

While he was busy hiding his head in his blanket, his phone went off with a notification sound. He quickly reached out for it and with his best attempt at opening his eyes, he checked the message.

 _I want to share my pain, Ten. I heard from the Cake God that the Cake Angel is sick._

Tsuna wanted to laugh at the silliness of the message, but his body refused to cooperate, so he settled for having a stupid grin on his face. As time passed by, Xanxus became more creative with his emojis and how he worded his messages. Tsuna had always wondered if this was how he _really_ was, and that malevolent, sophisticated aura was how he wanted to portray himself to the public.

There was another notification and Tsuna opened it.

 _Tsu-kun, if you're reading this, you're not resting enough._

Tsuna sighed and set his phone aside. His mom had psychic powers too.

Suddenly, Tsuna could hear hurried footsteps coming from the stairs and then the door to his bedroom burst open.

"T-T-Tsuna," it was Takeshi, looking very silly with his messy clothes and messy hair and haggard breathing. "I came here as fast as I could."

Tsuna frowned. "How did you know I'm sick?"

"Mama was very worried so she passed by the shop," Takeshi explained as he walked over and sat on his side. "Are you alright?"

Tsuna smiled as best as he could. "As alright as someone who has a fever."

"You don't get fevers often so this is really strange." Takeshi moved to place his hand on Tsuna's forehead, his fingers grazing along the area uncovered with the cooling pad. "Did you check your temperature yet?"

Tsuna was about to say no when the door opened again.

"Tsuna —

Tsuna wanted to laugh at Kensuke's confused expression. It wasn't everyday his face had a different look on it aside from glaring or frowning. Tsuna also noticed his clothes were equally as rumpled as Takeshi's and his hair was equally as messy. Maybe he ran too . . . ? Then the guy glared at Takeshi, quickly losing the rare, confused look.

"Mama told me you're sick," he walked forward and held up a hand. "I brought a thermometer just to be sure."

"Ahh, long time no see, Mochida," Takeshi stood up, towering over Kensuke.

Kensuke glanced at him. "Been a while, guard dog. You're doing a poor job of guarding Tsuna."

"Takeshi — " Tsuna had to pause to breathe, "Is not a guard dog."

Takeshi turned to him. "Please save your energy, Tsuna."

The door opened again. "Tsuna! I brought you some energy bars — oh? Is this a reunion?!"

Kensuke glared at the new arrival. "Sasagawa Ryohei."

Ryohei stepped in front of Kensuke and clapped his shoulder. "Mochida Kensuke! Looking as menacing as ever!"

"I'm not menacing —

"T-Tsuna?" Enma's head appeared from the doorway, his eyes glancing warily at the other occupants of the room.

Tsuna smiled in an instant. "Enma, come in."

"T-t-there's a guy behind me," Enma explained, and said guy threw the door open with one hand, while the other hand held his tonfa.

"Crowding around a sick person . . . is unacceptable."

* * *

"I'm sorry, Tsu-kun," Nana delivered a bowl of congee to Tsuna, who was already looking worse than before. "I went a bit overboard and told everyone you're sick."

Tsuna paled even more as he looked at the window. "I noticed."

Nana smiled and sat next to him on his bed. "If it makes you feel better, I herded them off downstairs and told them the second floor is off-limits — including your window — and I also told them to go home instead."

That seriously was a big relief for him, Tsuna realized, as he unconsciously let out a huge sigh.

"Oh, but they're so persistent so they're still at the living room."

"Don't suddenly take it back!" Tsuna whined. He was already relieved!

"Just focus on getting better, Tsu-kun," Nana giggled, oblivious to her son's slowly crumbling sanity. "I'll handle your suitors."

Tsuna hid his head in his blanket. "They're not my suitors." His mom was having _way_ too much fun with this.

She patted him on the head, or what was visible peeking through the blanket. "Don't let them hear you say that. By the way, a few more people came to check up on you. They must be really worried."

 _Tsuna_ was worried. He didn't know what could happen if these different sets of people meet each other. They weren't exactly normal and socially adept.

"They were so sweet, Tsu-kun! Some brought flowers!"

 _Flowers?!_ He only had a _fever_ , for crying out loud!

"I'll convince them to go home. Eat your congee, Tsu-kun, and if you need anything, call me with your phone, okay?"

Tsuna peeked out from his blanket and nodded. He could see his mom visibly flinching as if controlling herself from glomping him . . . then composed herself and exited the bedroom while muttering _too cute for his own good._

He just wanted to take a rest and not worry about a thing today. Was that too much to ask?

* * *

Tsuna's eyes fluttered open. _Oh._ He fell asleep? With a quick glance at his phone he found it was one in the afternoon. He managed to get two hours of sleep.

But now he felt even worse. His head felt like it was splitting into two and it was getting very hard to breathe. Just what the heck was happening to him?

He peeled off the fever pad on his forehead, and in his attempt to alleviate his breathing, he pushed away his blanket to lighten the load on his chest. Futile. So the next best thing was to remove his shirt, which he did with great effort, but it really didn't help at all.

Oh well.

He's _so_ thirsty. Need water. He looked around, but he already emptied his glass before he fell asleep. Must get water.

He managed to stand up without wobbling and managed to walk without tripping. Tsuna was barely aware of his surroundings so he was surprised he reached downstairs without falling over. He couldn't even think straight anymore. It felt like he was navigating the house through pure instinct.

When he reached the kitchen, Nana gasped dramatically.

"Tsu-kun!" her voice sounded panicked but Tsuna paid no attention to her. He had to get his water. He pulled the fridge open to get some but Nana intercepted him. "You're sick, Tsu-kun! Cold drinks are no go!"

"But I need it, Mama," he pleaded, pouting his lips. "So thirsty."

Nana sighed. "I told you to call me when you need something . . ." But she relented anyway and served Tsuna his cold drink. As soon as Tsuna emptied his glass, there was a strong feeling of relief that washed over him that his knees went weak and he almost stumbled on the floor, if not for the fact he got to brace himself against the table. Nana quickly sat him down on the chair.

"My head hurts. Everything's spinning," he murmured, clutching his head.

"You should get back to your bed, Tsu-kun. I'll call for someone to carry you, okay?"

"N-no! Mom! I don't want to bother. I can do it. Probably."

"I'll carry him."

Tsuna swore his heart stopped when he heard that voice. It had been a while since he heard that rugged, husky tone in close proximity and he was a little afraid of being right, because if he was then that meant _that guy_ was here. In his freaking house. Tsuna was now convinced his home address was publicly available through every possible means of information sharing.

Nana giggled, as she usually did when overwhelmed with emotions. "That's very nice of you, Xan-kun! Tsuna would be delighted!"

" _You're_ the one who's delighted," Tsuna deadpanned, but his cheeks were blushing a bright red. Because of the fever. Yes.

Xanxus strolled over to his side and without even a warning, he scooped him off the floor and carried him princess-style.

"Ooh!" Nana squealed. Tsuna didn't resist the urge to roll his eyes.

"This is really fucking inappropriate," Xanxus growled under his voice as he walked off towards the stairs. "Why the hell are you naked?"

"I-I'm not naked!" At least he knew he wasn't! Tsuna looked down at himself and saw they were both _half_ right; he was shirtless. He did remove his shirt earlier since he was having trouble breathing. Still wasn't fixed, by the way. "W-well, this I can explain. I'm having a hard time breathing and —

 _Wait a minute._

"Why are you here?!" Tsuna shrieked. He almost forgot this was freaking _Xanxus_ traipsing around in his home as if he belonged there.

"I go wherever I fucking want," Xanxus replied rather sincerely as he stepped up the stairs and towards Tsuna's bedroom.

Tsuna didn't even have the energy to resist and get away. In fact, right now he was more worried about the possibility of the Varia flocking his house since Xanxus was here and —

"Oh my god, are the rest of the Varia here?!" he shrieked again, staring at Xanxus with wide, brown eyes.

Xanxus glared at him. "As if I'd let those scum loiter around something that's not their fucking business." He stopped in front of Tsuna's bedroom door and whispered, "Hold tight."

" _Hold tight_ —

Then Xanxus kicked his door open with enough force to shake the whole goddamned house.

"Don't destroy our house!" Tsuna was seriously close to crying. Why, in the name of all that was good and holy, was this man in their house? Did Tsuna do something so despicable within his nineteen years of life to justify this kind of torture? It didn't help that the guy only smirked at him and literally threw him down on his bed. "If you forgot, I'm sick and I think I'm going to throw up —

"Don't be such a wuss."

Xanxus was the worst caretaker in the whole world.

How could Tsuna make him go away? He tried to think of a proper escape plan but his mind was uncooperative, it hurt to think too much and he was pretty sure his body was also uncooperative at this point. In resignation he watched Xanxus look around his room, when the man's red eyes landed on Tsuna's phone placed neatly on the bedside table.

 _Crap._ Did he leave it open? Tsuna could see the gears working in Xanxus's head. If he reached for his phone now, it would be too suspicious.

 _Holy crap._ His identity as _Ten_ would be uncovered! He was going to die!

"Give me your mail address," the guy demanded.

 _Ah._ So he just wanted his mail address. He didn't see any implicating messages. That was good . . . if not for the fact that his mail address was _Ten_ 's mail address!

"W-why do you need it?" Tsuna gulped, sinking deeper into the bed. "I could call your office fine with my number."

Xanxus was already hovering above him. "I want it. Now give it to me."

"We couldn't even possibly talk about things, right? Ha ha ha . . ."

The guy leant closer, his face a bit too close to Tsuna's. "You could think of it as my reward for bringing your sorry ass up here."

"C-couldn't it be something else?" _Please choose something else. Anything but_ that.

Xanxus placed a finger under Tsuna's chin. "Are you sure you want it to be something else?"

Tsuna's brain was reeling. _What the hell —_ his tone and choice of words were very suspicious! Then Tsuna's mind decided to be cooperative and supplied him with very detailed images that wouldn't get out and now he was a blushing mess and —

"Xan-kun," Nana showed up at the doorway, "We had an understanding, remember?"

Xanxus frowned and immediately stepped back from Tsuna's prone form. "Your immunity as the mother is very despicable."

Nana only smiled and gestured with her hands to get Xanxus to come closer. "You should head home, Xan-kun."

The guy turned back to Tsuna instead. "Get well soon, you fucking loser." He turned back to the door, but then turned around again one last time, "I _always_ get what I want, Sawada Tsunayoshi, and you best ingrain that to your head."

He finally left.

"The rowdy type, huh?" Nana chuckled as she stepped inside the room. "Feel better already, Tsu-kun?"

"NO!" Tsuna had no freaking idea what the conversation between his mom and Xanxus was all about.

"Ah well, I came up here to let you know that Lambo-kun and his friends — Fuuta-kun and I-Pin-chan, was it? — left you a get well soon card. So cute," she handed him the card.

That was a serious load off Tsuna's chest, to be honest. At least he was free from Xanxus and got a cute card in exchange.

"Please rest, Tsu-kun. Mama's going to protect you and take care of you, okay?"

Tsuna blinked. "Um, okay . . .?"

"Good!" She lingered at the door for a few more moments before she added, "And _call me_ when you need something."

She left and closed the door.

That was a weird reaction from his mom, Tsuna mused. Anyway, he decided to let it go and opened the card instead to view the contents.

 _Tsuna-nii, as soon as you get better, I will make you lots of gyoza! - I-Pin_

Dumplings were always welcome for him.

 _Get well soon, Tsuna-nii! I'm going to kill whoever made you sick. - The Great Lambo_

Tsuna wished Lambo wasn't so violent.

 _Please take care of yourself Tsuna-nii. You're still the number one most likely to be targeted and captured! - Fuuta_

That guy had to make him remember, didn't he?

Tsuna hid himself under his blanket while making sure to hide the card in the drawer under everything else. As if that could erase his fate of being the number one target.

* * *

Wonders of wonders, Tsuna was feeling much better when nighttime came around but he was feeling really, really sticky. Maybe because he hadn't taken a bath yet and he was sweating too much from covering himself in his blanket all day.

So, like a decent human being, he decided a much-needed bath was in order. He stepped down the stairs to announce to his mom he was cured from whatever illness he had.

Except Tsuna saw his living room was crowded. It was a good thing nobody noticed him as he hid himself in the hallway.

 _Why are there so many people?!_ He wanted to scream at them to go away.

With his best tiptoeing abilities, he made his way to the bathroom and locked himself in. Then he took out his phone and typed a message furiously to his mom.

 _Why are there so many people?!_

Nana replied in an instant. _Silly, they're your visitors. Where are you?_

 _I'm in the bathroom because I want to take a bath. I thought they all went home?_

 _They come and go to check up on you. I told you to call me when you need something._

 _I'm fine now! I'm cured! Please tell them to go home._

Tsuna paused, then sent out another message. _And make sure they don't go near the bathroom._

Then his phone rang. It was his mom.

"Tsu-kun!" his mom's voice echoed in the room when he answered the phone, surprising him a bit. "I told them you're okay now and they could go home. But they want to see you up and about so it would ease their minds. Their words, not mine."

Tsuna _really_ didn't want to see anyone. In fact, he was pretty positive he had been sick because there were too many crazy people surrounding him for the past few days. "I don't really want to meet any of them right now. Xanxus still gives me the shivers . . ."

"Then what should I do? They're all waiting for you to make an appearance."

 _He's not a freaking celebrity!_ "Can't you just show them a picture or something —

"Okay!"

And the line was cut.

His mom dropped the line. Tsuna stared at his phone in disbelief, the phone app mercilessly showing him the total duration of their call. He gulped as he closed the app and set his phone aside.

He fell for her trap.

 _He fell hard._

And he couldn't even get mad at her because he didn't see it coming. He was the one who presented the idea. He practically gave her the go ahead to do her nefarious deed. There was no one else to blame but him.

He was defeated.

He was going to stay in the bathroom for a while.

* * *

Nana showed him a long piece of paper. When Tsuna glanced at it, his brain automatically stopped functioning until he looked away again. It was the list of names of the people who visited him with timestamps for both arrival and departure. It was also pretty long. But that was the part where Tsuna's brain stopped functioning, as if there was a built-in filter on his eyes that blurred the names for him or else he'd probably break down and cry into a sobbing mess. He then begged his mom to never, ever show him that list again.

Nana promptly burned it on the spot with her gas lighter.

Sometimes, Tsuna wondered if he chose the right parent to be with. His dad's apathetic treatment towards him seemed to be a much better option day by day.


	24. Obligation

_uploaded on October 10, 2015_

Happy birthday to Xanxus! (Thanks Catty-Phoenix!) Happy birthday in advance to Tsuna and Reborn.

By the way, I am curious — who do you ship Tsuna with? Let me know in a review or PM! (It's only a survey and won't affect the story.) Once again thank you so much for reading this crazy work of fiction!

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Obligation**

* * *

"Crazy weekend, huh?"

That was Reborn's greeting to him as soon as Tsuna stepped inside Kawahira's Baked Goodies to start the Monday shift. The guy was already dressed up for work, with his black uniform and frilly orange apron, and was seated on his special, comfy chair behind the counter.

Tsuna sighed. "I don't want to talk about it." He didn't want to relive those memories.

"Pity. You being sick was the crux of it all, apparently."

Tsuna was appalled. "How do you even know these things? You weren't there!"

"Namimori is a small town," Reborn smirked, threading his hands together. "News get out fast."

"Nothing happened anyway," Tsuna quickly replied in attempt to expunge any bad _news_ Reborn got his hands onto. "I was sick and I got better. That was _it_."

" _Dame_ -Tsuna, you underestimate me sometimes," Reborn hummed, standing up from his seat and leaning over the counter. "I know a lot of things. It's part of my job."

"But you're a barista —

"Are you implying baristas shouldn't need to know much?"

"Stop putting words in my mouth, Reborn! I didn't say that!" Tsuna stomped towards the staff room. "Excuse me, I need to change." He entered and slammed the door close.

Sometimes, sometimes Tsuna didn't know what to make of that annoying man. Why was he always trying to incite him? What benefit would it be for him if he made Tsuna angry? Well, Tsuna had never reached the point of getting mad — he was already used to the crazy stuff happening around him — but why did it felt like that guy _wanted_ him to get furious and mad and angry? He wasn't a short-tempered person so Reborn's attempts would be futile if that was true.

Tsuna was so annoyed he almost forgot he had an agenda today involving Reborn.

Tsuna had to thank him for taking care of him last Friday. _Crap._

* * *

 _Mission Log #1: The Subtle Approach_

Tsuna decided to show his appreciation for Reborn's uncharacteristic kindness by being subtle. He didn't want to outwardly proclaim his gratefulness since he knew the guy would take too much pleasure out of it; that man was the worst combination of petty and smug mixed with malicious. Instead, he would do it discreetly, maybe put a bit of misdirection, and as long as he would get the message across, that was fine, right?

Tsuna began to hatch his plan.

It was a slow day like the usual. It was around eleven in the morning already and no customer had shown up yet. Which was fine for Tsuna, in fact it was the most preferrable scenario for him so he wouldn't be distracted.

He opened up the conversation. "So, Reborn."

The guy was fiddling with the espresso machine and making himself a cup. "Hmm?"

"About that crazy thing that happened last Friday —

"Oh, you mean the part where you fainted after getting hit in the head? You should work on your dodge."

 _Remain calm, Tsuna._ "I can dodge fine, thank you very much. That was a lucky strike."

Reborn finished making his espresso and turned around to face him. "I told you this before. All it takes is one hit."

Suddenly a hand came out of nowhere and flicked Tsuna's forehead _hard_. "Ow!" His hands flew to his forehead to ease the pain.

"Point made," Reborn announced smugly before he took a sip of his espresso. "If that was a bullet, you'd be dead right about now."

Tsuna was rubbing his forehead gingerly. "I'm not exactly the type of person that gets assassinated. I don't have to worry about bullets anytime soon."

"Different sorts of people get a hit all the time," the guy was now seated back on his special chair. "You never know if someone wanted to target a nineteen-year-old cashier at a strange cake shop in Namimori Station."

Tsuna froze when the feeling of dread was back as he remembered Fuuta's ranking — number one most likely to be targeted and captured. Suddenly Reborn's silly words had merit and the throbbing pain on his forehead was an ugly reminder of that.

Tsuna frowned. He supposed he should start his training regimen again . . . maybe he could ask Ryohei for help.

* * *

 _Mission Log #2: The Show-It-Through-Actions Approach_

Tsuna realized he forgot his plan to thank Reborn and only remembered nearing lunch time. That man had successfully changed and diverted the topic enough to make him forget his original goal. Since Tsuna knew Reborn _didn't_ know he had a plan to thank him, he knew it was mere coincidence, but if he was even slightly doubtful of himself, he would believe the man did it on purpose. But of course that was a silly thing to even think about.

Anyway, his first approach was obviously inadequate, so he decided on his next attempt — showing his appreciation through actions. And what better and more appropriate way to achieve that other than offering to buy him his lunch?

"Reborn," he called the guy's attention, who was busy writing something down on his notepad.

"Hmm?" Reborn replied without taking his eyes off his pad.

"Let's have lunch?" Tsuna thought he would ease the topic in first before offering to treat him.

"You go ahead, I'll take mine later," Reborn scanned the coffee beans in front of him and wrote something.

He couldn't believe he was going to say this — just in attempt to convince this guy, but _here goes_ , "It's been a while since we ate together," Tsuna was already physically cringing at himself, "So I was thinking we could go to this place —

Reborn finally turned to him but he was still holding up his notepad. "Tsuna. Kawahira wants a comprehensive list of things we still need for the cafe part of the shop."

Tsuna bit his lip. "Um. And?"

Reborn turned away and went back to what he was doing. "I'm doing it right now. I'll take my lunch after I finish this."

Tsuna quickly took a peek at the kitchen and excused himself from Uncle Kawahira, then exited the cake shop just as fast. He couldn't believe it — he got _shot down_! After he even went through the trouble of saying something so embarrassing and _totally_ not what he had been pondering about for the past week. Reborn refused his offer to eat lunch with him, but of course it really didn't happen like that, the guy was just busy and Tsuna had unfortunate timing even though his mind was telling him that list could be postponed until after lunch _right_? But Reborn didn't seem like the type of person that would postpone important work for a silly thing like eating lunch together with his co-worker. That was a normal people behavior.

Oh man. Tsuna was acting like an entitled little jerk. Reborn had every right to refuse anyway.

 _Gah!_ He hated feeling like this. Time to find that special sandwich place and treat himself with extra fillings.

Tsuna couldn't deny his reaction was a little over the top. He didn't know why it was affecting him so much. It even got to the point that he was so distracted from too much sulking, he almost bumped into the guy in front of him while he was waiting in line at the sandwich shop.

"Sorry," he mumbled under his breath. He was not in the mood to socialize but that didn't mean he wasn't going to be polite.

The guy turned around, "Oh no, there's no need to apologize."

He _had_ to be nice, Tsuna sulked even further, which made him feel guilty by saying a callous sorry. He decided to be more sincere this time. "Really, I'm sorry for almost bumping into you. I'll be more careful next time —

Tsuna froze when he took a good, long look at the guy's face. "K-Kyouya?" _No, he's not._ This guy had longer hair . . . and could smile properly. But he looked a lot like Kyouya!

Then he realized he was staring. "Sorry!" he bowed down and looked away to hide his shame. He was apologizing for _almost_ bumping the guy but now he made an even bigger offense by staring. How pathetic could he get? Today just wasn't his day.

But Tsuna remembered for the second time that the guy was nice. "None taken. And I am not Kyouya, though it seems to be the general consensus," he chuckled which made Tsuna fluster even more. "Are you his friend?"

 _Friend?_ Were they friends? Tsuna didn't exactly know what kind of relationship he had with Kyouya. "More like I'm a little animal?"

The guy laughed again and smiled. "Good enough. I am Fon. Kyouya's relative." He held out a hand which Tsuna readily took.

"My name's Tsuna."

Tsuna saw the guy's eyes widen for a fraction of a second before smiling again. "It's nice to meet you, Tsuna. Why don't we commemorate our first meeting by having lunch together?"

A distant acquaintance was more willing to have lunch with him than his co-worker.

Tsuna closed his eyes. He should really stop dwelling on that.

* * *

Fon was a funny and witty guy. He was like the complete opposite of Kyouya! And he was more friendly and nicer than that other guy who turned him down for lunch.

Tsuna let out a huge sigh. He should really, _really_ stop being so bitter about it. Besides, he had an agenda to accomplish regardless of what he was feeling right now. He _needed_ to do his plan because it was the right thing to do.

* * *

 _Mission Log #3: The Indirect-yet-Undeniable Approach_

When Tsuna returned to the cake shop, Reborn was already on his way out. He couldn't help but think _how convenient_ in a sarcastic manner, but Tsuna already promised himself he would stop feeling so resentful about it. He had no valid reason to, after all.

Instead, he opted to use his time better by thinking of a way to do his next attempt. And he had a freaking _epiphany_. He should show his appreciation through something so desirable for Reborn, he wouldn't be able to turn it down and he would be forced to accept it. It should be something he liked or enjoyed doing because obviously lunches were automatic shutdowns!

With this in mind, Tsuna nodded to himself and proceeded to think as he sat on Reborn's special chair.

And then just as fast, Tsuna realized — he had no idea what Reborn liked doing.

When he thought deeply about it, he came to an even worse realization — he knew _nothing_ about Reborn. Except maybe his name (was it even his real name?), his love for coffee and his penchant for annoying him. On the contrary, the guy might as well had been living in his house for his whole life.

Tsuna couldn't offer coffee. The guy already had free reign on the coffee in the cake shop. Not to mention he could brew it himself exactly how he wanted it to be, and Tsuna's attempt would most likely be tossed into the sink instead.

He was on a standstill.

Then he remembered he had Colonnello's mail address saved somewhere in his phone. For some reason it appeared one day.

Taking out his phone, he quickly scrolled to the address and gulped. Would he risk it? Was it worth dealing with Colonnello just to know what Reborn's interests were? He wasn't even sure how much the two knew each other and all he had to back himself up was the almost-duel they had the last time. But, well, even enemies knew something about their rivals, right?

 _Colonnello, this is Tsuna. Do you have an idea on what interests Reborn?_ No, too suspicious.

 _Colonnello, this is Tsuna. Please tell me the things Reborn likes._ That sounded demanding and even more suspicious.

 _Colonnello, this is Tsuna. How are you?_ _Are you friends with Reborn?_ Wait . . . that sounded too far off from his original purpose!

No, no this was a bad idea! Tsuna thought up a different tactic. What if he asked the opinion of somebody who _didn't_ know Reborn and could give out good guesses based on the person's character? Yeah, that could work!

As Tsuna scrolled through his list of contacts, he picked out the person who had the farthest personality from Reborn and had never, ever met him.

 _Dino, I need to ask your opinion!_ Tsuna sent this message first to check if the guy was busy, and when the guy replied, _Sure Tsuna, what's up?_ , he began typing his question with the vaguest, yet appropriate, description of Reborn.

 _I'm getting a gift for this person, but I don't know what to get. What do you think a sophisticated, cynical, and slightly mysterious guy would want?_

Hopefully Dino wouldn't find his question weird, Tsuna thought as he waited in anticipation for the reply. Within a few minutes, his phone notified him of a new message.

 _That kind of person wants something practical and useful._

Tsuna knew it, Dino was dependable! He asked the right guy!

 _I recommend getting a gun. Specifically a_ _CZ 75 1st._

Tsuna took it back. This guy was crazy too.

He should try asking Fon. He seemed to be a well adjusted guy, so maybe he could provide better advice? But wouldn't it be tacky for his first mail to be about somebody else? Ah well, they got acquainted in a similar vein anyway (as a mutual contact of Kyouya's) so it shouldn't be too weird.

After a brief greeting, Tsuna messaged him a similar question like he sent to Dino.

 _Mysterious guys like something out of this world,_ Fon replied. Tsuna mulled it over in his head before reading on, _It should be something surprising._ Tsuna supposed that could work. _It should also have a long reach._ Well, Tsuna thought the purpose of giving something to Reborn was supposed to be touching and memorable. _You should give this person a Barrett M82._

Tsuna put his phone back in his pocket. Fon was a nice guy, but apparently he was also crazy like the rest of them.

* * *

He didn't get anywhere. Reborn went back from his lunch and Tsuna still didn't have any idea what to get him. A few people came and went to purchase cake and to ask about his condition (Chrome refused to believe he was okay until he let her touch him, while Kusakabe had to measure his temperature with his own thermometer). Then it was nighttime and near closing time and he still didn't have anything good in mind.

He was getting a bit desperate.

And then it was six-fifty-five in the evening. Five minutes till they close shop.

He was getting _really_ desperate.

"Reborn!" Tsuna called him while the guy was busy setting aside the chairs and tables.

Reborn turned around and looked at him straight in the eye. "Hmm?"

He was getting really, really desperate.

To heck with Reborn's arrogance and pettiness.

"Tsuna, if you have anything to —

"Thank you," he mumbled under his breath and looked away.

"What was that? I didn't quite catch it."

 _And there it is_ , Tsuna thought miserably as he glanced at Reborn's face and saw that smug smirk on his lips. Tsuna was caught now and he had no way to backtrack out of it.

This guy was a real meanie.

Tsuna swallowed his pride once more and faced him properly. "Thank you," he grumbled but loud enough to be clear, "for taking care of me last Friday." He absolutely refused to feel embarrassed because he knew Reborn wouldn't let him forget about it for at least a few days. He was awful like that.

But this time, there was something different with Reborn's smirk. When it was usually condescending, this time it seemed more like . . . a genuine smile? Huh? Was that even possible?

"You're welcome, Tsuna," the guy replied and, taking several steps forward, gave him a pat on the head. "Good job." He lifted up his hand and went back to arranging the chairs.

Tsuna raised his hands to his head. He got complimented for doing what, exactly? Besides, he was the one showing appreciation, why would Reborn suddenly return it with a misplaced praise?! Now Tsuna felt he owed this guy again for something and he had to thank him again! They would be stuck in an endless cycle of thanking and welcoming if this went on!

Ah, well, Tsuna decided one "thank you" was enough for today.

He went home that night with a big smile plastered on his face.

 _Mission Log #4: The To-Heck-With-It Approach — Success._


	25. Rational

_uploaded on October 17, 2015_

Thank you very much for answering my question! I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that most of you prefer All27 but of course there are still some favorites. I tallied your responses and the top three (aside from All27) are Reborn, Hibari and Yamamoto.

I also received a few compliments with the cover art. Thank you so much! I actually have some drawings for KHR in my tumblr so if you're curious, please check it out (just remove the spaces since FFN doesn't allow links): msleilei . tumblr . com

I think we're getting some plot now or something. Thank you so much for reading this story and as always please enjoy!

* * *

 **Rational**

* * *

"Uncle Kawahira?" Tsuna poked his head through the kitchen door.

"Yes, Tsuna-kun?"

"We're out of Cloudy cupcakes."

"Perfect timing!" Uncle Kawahira pointed at one of the fridges. "Please get them from that fridge. I made a few more batches earlier today." He turned around and went back to mixing batter.

Tsuna gulped. Suddenly his legs felt weak and it was like he couldn't move.

He was _freaking_ nervous.

One might ask him, why would he be nervous entering the Kawahira's Baked Goodies' kitchen? Surely there shouldn't be anything wrong with that, right?

 _Well, yeah._ But Tsuna had never been to the kitchen before.

Ever.

There were times he poked his head inside whenever he needed to say something to Uncle Kawahira, but that was the entirety of it. It _was_ silly since he was employed here for two months already, but he had no reason to enter the kitchen, and even if he did, Uncle Kawahira would always offer to do it himself. They did have an understanding before that the kitchen area was for Uncle Kawahira, while the service area was for Tsuna.

But now Uncle Kawahira was openly telling him to enter the kitchen.

Tsuna didn't know what to do.

"Is there something wrong?" It was a female voice coming from behind him — the customer.

Tsuna turned his head around and smiled as best as he could. "Ahh, everything's fine." _Where's Reborn when you need his charm to distract the female populace?_

The girl nodded at him impassively. "I can wait. Enma told me the cake here is delicious and I trust his judgement."

Way to put pressure on him! He should focus on getting the cupcakes from the kitchen —

"Here it is, Tsuna-kun," Uncle Kawahira appeared out of nowhere with a big smile on his face as he handed him the tray of Cloudy cupcakes. "I'm sorry I ordered you to get it when I could have done it myself."

Tsuna gulped again. "I-it's okay, Uncle Kawahira," he took the tray and quickly returned to his area to store the cupcakes in the chiller and display cases. He was relieved. If he was the main character in a work of fiction, wouldn't that scenario be the perfect excuse for a turning point in the story? Apparently not.

"Three Cloudy cupcakes," Tsuna presented the box of cupcakes and placed it on the counter. The girl nudged her head as a bow and as a confirmation of her order. Nodding himself, Tsuna began entering the order in the register and started small talk — now would be the right time to satiate his curiosity. "You're Enma's friend?"

"A childhood friend. Adelheid," she introduced herself, her face still impassive. "I know you helped Enma before, when you caught him resting on the ground after he tripped." _Tripped?_ Did that guy seriously tell his friends he only tripped when Tsuna was pretty sure he was beaten up? "You might be a nice person but that doesn't automatically mean you're okay in my book."

Tsuna sighed in his head. This girl reminded him of Kyouya. He wanted to befriend her since she was Enma's friend, but she dismissed him in a heartbeat. To be honest it left him crestfallen but a bit more decided on befriending her. She said she was Enma's childhood friend, so they had known each other for several years now; she shouldn't be that bad, right? Maybe he could ask Enma for help?

Before he could think of his next move, Adelheid left the shop with her purchase.

That was when Reborn decided to appear.

"Where were you?" Tsuna whined at Reborn who was fixing the ties of his apron. "I could've used your help to entertain the customer while I got the cupcakes from the back and —

"I know I'm reliable, Tsuna, but you shouldn't depend on me too much. Even though a boss normally delegates tasks to others you should also learn how to be more capable."

"I'm not a boss. You're just making up excuses," Tsuna pouted even more and crossed his arms, turning away.

Then he felt Reborn step closer to him as his gut feeling flared to life. It wasn't malfunctioning this time — like it usually did when Reborn was around — and it warned him of an incoming attack; he stepped to the side, avoiding the flick he was about to get on his forehead.

"Good evasion," Reborn nodded as he brought his hand down to his side. "Let's practice this from time to time."

Why the heck would he need to practice avoiding flicks to the forehead?!

While Tsuna continued to sulk on his side of the store, his eyes found their way to the window panes. The shop was near the train platform enough that you can see people coming to and fro from the train. It was at a prime spot! That was the reason why Tsuna believed this shop had the potential to have lots of customers. He couldn't understand why it was the other way around. Sometimes he never even see anyone _glance_ at their shop. It was as if it didn't exist.

But all of his musings didn't matter when it happened.

Time stopped.

His breath caught in his throat.

Tsuna saw _him_ again.

Him with the sparkling blond hair and the sunset eyes — _goddamit,_ _brain_ — walking to the train platform. He was talking to someone with reddish hair and a strange tattoo on his face —

Tsuna grabbed the counter to stop himself from running after them. He was on the clock, dammit! He should focus on the cake shop and not on strange, yet mesmerizing, people!

"What are you doing, Tsuna?" Reborn asked from behind him before grabbing one of his wrists. That instantly snapped him out of his daze as he tugged his hand away from Reborn's grip.

"I'm having an internal conflict," Tsuna grumbled and glared before looking away again. Who was that guy and why the hell was he having this effect on him? At least now he knew the guy frequented Namimori Station — Tsuna would have to be more observant in the future if he wanted a chance to talk to him.

Wait . . . why did he want to talk to him? In fact, what would he say? Ask him his name? Ask him where he lived and what he liked and why he had those enchanting orange eyes —

Tsuna stopped himself before his thoughts get any wilder. Those thoughts were stalkerish and he didn't want to be a stalker!

" _Dame_ -Tsuna, I bet you're thinking of something lewd right now."

"I-I'm not!" Tsuna quickly shook his head and tried to fight the blush from showing up on his face. He was _not_ thinking of anything lewd at all. NOT AT ALL! It was just . . . that guy was too . . . _good-looking?_ Attractive? Charming? He also had an air of nobility around him, as if Tsuna wasn't worthy to look at him. It was as if Tsuna wasn't even worthy of _thinking_ about him!

And those tangerine eyes — in the three seconds that he looked at Tsuna, it was enough to make him feel all gooey and —

 _Oh god._ Tsuna leant against the counter and stared at it in disbelief. What the heck was happening to him? What if Skull-sama was right? What if he did fall in love at first sight? But that was too irrational and Tsuna couldn't see himself experiencing that for no reason at all!

He looked nice. He was nice to Tsuna. He even smelled nice —

Tsuna sat himself at the corner of the shop to reflect on his life.

* * *

Tsuna could hear the voices of Uncle Kawahira and Reborn but their words weren't registering in his head.

"What's wrong with Tsuna-kun?"

"He's reflecting."

"Reflecting? Why?"

"He felt the need to do so after staring at the window, apparently."

"At the window?"

There were a few seconds of silence before Uncle Kawahira spoke again, "Reborn-kun, please watch over the shop," followed by the telltale chimes of the shop's door bell.

Tsuna was brought back to reality. He stood up from his corner of the shop before rushing to the glass windows, pressing his hands against the pane. He tried to look for Uncle Kawahira but he was too late, the man had already disappeared from sight.

He brought his hands down to his sides. He had _never_ seen Uncle Kawahira leave the shop before. As far as he knew the man lived in the shop, so he wanted to see what would it be like for him to leave the store. But he was too fast! For an older man he was still too energetic. More importantly, where did he go?

"Are you done sulking?" Reborn's voice was too close.

"What does it mean when your heart stops when you look at someone?" Tsuna asked on a whim, then quickly regretted it as he covered his mouth with his hand. _Goddamit,_ he could be such an idiot sometimes! He was not supposed to say that out loud!

Reborn snorted. "When your heart stops, you're probably dead."

It was a good thing Reborn wasn't a romanticist.

"Let's go back to your training," the guy spoke up again as Tsuna felt him walking away from the window.

It was a very good thing. Knowing Reborn, he would pester Tsuna until the end of time to make him explain why he was thinking about heart-stopping moments and Tsuna would never be able to explain it. Especially if it involved a stranger — a good-looking stranger, _but still a stranger._

* * *

Uncle Kawahira returned an hour later. Tsuna forgot the man was even outside and quickly dismissed his entrance just as fast. He couldn't remember the reason why Uncle Kawahira went out in the first place. Was there even a reason? Maybe the man liked to take walks from time to time.

Now that Tsuna wondered about it, what was _he_ doing before Uncle Kawahira left the shop? He sold some cupcakes to Enma's friend and . . . ah, well, if it was important he would remember it later.

* * *

It was a scary-looking man.

Tsuna stared up at a guy with wild, green hair and droopy, gray eyes, who, at the moment, was more interested in Reborn than all the other things in the shop.

"C-Can I help you?" Tsuna tried to get his attention as his responsibility as the cashier.

The man ignored him. "I didn't realize you'd be here, Reborn."

Tsuna turned his head to look at the guy behind him, but said guy had an uncaring, yet dangerous look on his face. So this person knew Reborn?

Then Reborn looked away from the man. "I only talk to customers."

Tsuna's jaw dropped to the floor. Was that how one spoke to acquaintances?!

The guy was undeterred and held his smirk. "I suppose it _is_ understandable since we are in a cake shop." Finally he acknowledged Tsuna's presence as his eyes found and locked on Tsuna's big, brown ones. "A whole Mesmerizing Rain cake and a cappucino to go." He then glanced back at Reborn. "There, now I'm a paying customer."

Reborn turned around. "I'll get back to you after I make the cappucino."

 _Reborn's purposely being difficult,_ Tsuna thought in panic when an annoyed expression passed the man's face. He really didn't want a repeat of what happened between Colonnello and Reborn so he should do something about this _right now_. "U-um," he tried to get the man's attention again as he boxed the cake, "You're Reborn's friend?"

"Heh, friends . . ." both men mumbled at the same time. Tsuna guessed they weren't.

"I am Verde," the man introduced himself, extending out a hand. _Polite,_ Tsuna observed as he returned the kind gesture and shook hands with him. "You must be the owner of this shop."

"N-no, I'm just the cashier. I'm Tsuna." Colonnello assumed the same thing when they first met. Why would they make such a simple mistake? If anything, Reborn looked more like the owner of the shop than him!

"And I am the barista, Reborn," the guy placed the drink on the counter, keeping his eyes on Verde, "Which is why I'm here."

Tsuna could see Verde's eyebrows bunching up in confusion before the smirk returned on his lips. "I see. This must be what Colonnello was referring to, although I am still not convinced. It's too good to be true."

Reborn smirked back before breaking eye contact. "Take it or leave it."

Verde turned to Tsuna who was watching the exchange with utmost bewilderment — he didn't understand a thing, although he did pick up they were mutual acquaintances with Colonnello. "Tsuna. What is your full name?"

"Sawada Tsunayoshi," he answered wholeheartedly, not a little bit curious why Verde wanted his name in the first place.

The guy nodded. "Then, please allow me to call you Tsunayoshi."

"Um, okay?"

Verde smiled at him, which . . . kind of looked weird on his face, and yet it was surprisingly tender. Tsuna smiled back almost instinctively. "Tsunayoshi. I like you."

Tsuna choked on air as he felt his cheeks heat up. _What the heck?!_ This guy didn't even know his name five seconds ago! Not to mention there was a very, _very_ dangerous aura coming from behind him and Tsuna was pretty sure it was from Reborn.

"Interesting," Verde tapped his finger against his chin while staring straight at Tsuna, which might have caused more flushing and panic for him. "But I still need more substantial data to form a conclusive opinion."

"Oi," Reborn shoved the box and cup on Verde's hands, "Get your cake and get out."

Verde only snorted at him and left without saying anything else.

"Tsuna," Reborn slapped him upside the head, snapping him out of his daze, "Don't take that idiot's words seriously. He's testing your reaction."

Tsuna took a few deep breaths and when he was sure the heat on his face dissipated, he replied, "Reaction?"

"Yes. He wants to see how you will react."

Tsuna scrunched his eyebrows. "React on what?"

"With what he said." Suddenly, Reborn smiled at him sweetly, almost causing Tsuna to flee out of sheer terror. "Tsunayoshi. I like you."

. . .

"Oh, that."

"Yes, that."

"Well then. I'm going to take my lunch now."

Tsuna didn't even bother informing Uncle Kawahira before he made his escape away from the shop.

* * *

"Hello, Takeshi? Are you busy?"

"T-Tsuna? It's rare for you to call on a weekday — I'm walking to my next class right now —

"How do I go to Kishiki?"

"Oh? Are you enrolling for the next semester?"

"N-not yet. I want to see the university, that's all. And maybe the dorm you're staying in."

. . .

"Takeshi?"

"Stay where you are. I'm coming over."

"NO! Takeshi! I was just wondering about it. Besides you said you're on your way to class —

"Then this coming Saturday?"

" . . . Sounds good."

"Great! Okay, heading to class now, I promise!"

After saying their goodbyes, Tsuna ended the call with slight hesitation. He had felt too much distress he needed to calm himself down, and the first thing that came to his mind was Takeshi and his university and Kishiki and it just went from there. It wasn't as if he was actually thinking of going there, it was more of a passing thought but he said it anyway and now he had a date on Saturday with Takeshi.

He hadn't calmed down the slightest bit.

To be honest he didn't even want to return to the cake shop. Reborn made him nervous for some reason and that was why he ran away in the first place. It was his fight-or-flight response helping him survive another day that told him to _get away_.

Tsuna slumped against his seat and closed his eyes. _Be rational._ Of course he had to return to the shop! He should calm down and get back after his break.

But first, he had to eat.

When he opened his eyes, Byakuran was sitting in front of him with that ever-telling creepy smile of his.

He could eat later, Tsuna convinced himself before he stood up and got out of there as fast as he could.


	26. Phantom - Interlude II

_uploaded on October 24, 2015_

As always thank you so much for the wonderful reviews and for reading this story. Yes, that was Giotto! He was there for some reason. With G, no less! And they ride trains maybe for fun (?)!

I am very glad you're enjoying Tsuna's continued demise. Maybe he will get out of it eventually . . . but where's the fun in that? I just hope he survives through it.

Please enjoy this strange chapter.

* * *

 **Phantom**

* * *

Tsuna could feel something next to him on his bed.

His intuition woke him up and was welcomed with even puffs of breath behind his ear and the feeling of an arm draped over his waist. He tried not to move too much as he laid on his side; he didn't want to wake the person up or whatever it was lying down behind him. He didn't even dare open his eyes because he was too concerned with what he would see.

Instead, he laid still and tried to figure out how to get out of this. Judging by the sound of the breaths and the weight of the arm, the stranger was definitely asleep. Or it could be a good actor at feigning sleep. Tsuna seriously hoped he was wrong on his second guess. The stranger was bigger than him, too, so it was probably an adult. He couldn't tell if it was a man or a woman.

Was he getting assaulted? This situation sure seemed like it but he didn't feel threatened at all. He was more confused than anything and a little irritated he woke up too early. This was one of those times he thanked his calm demeanor when on a normal day he would be panicking already.

Maybe he should just try going back to sleep. If the stranger wanted to do something bad to him, it would've happened already.

* * *

When Tsuna woke up at his normal time, the stranger was gone from his bed. The spot where the person laid down was not even warm anymore so that meant it had already been a while since the stranger disappeared.

Tsuna knew it wasn't his mom but it wouldn't hurt to ask.

"Mom, did you sleep in my room last night?" Tsuna piped up as soon as he showed up in the kitchen.

Nana turned around with a big smile on her face. "Oh! Am I allowed to sleep next to you, Tsu-kun?"

"N-no! Mom, that's not what I asked."

His mom pouted before turning back to the stove. "I didn't sleep in your room because you won't allow me."

Tsuna sighed as he rubbed his temples. His mom was being cheeky on purpose but he supposed he already expected that.

Nana placed a bowl of miso soup on the table with the rest of their food. "Now eat your breakfast or you'll be late for school!"

* * *

He didn't tell anyone about the stranger. He didn't want to worry his friends and Tsuna thought it wasn't a big deal anyway, and even if it was, he could deal with it himself. He would be more careful and hopefully his gut feeling would always warn him of the potential molester. He should also probably lock his door and windows at night.

"There's Mochida again," Takeshi muttered with a low voice as they walked to the rooftop for lunch. Sure enough, in a matter of seconds Tsuna saw Mochida-san following them, hiding in a corner and staring a little too intensely. He wasn't even being discreet about it.

Tsuna smiled at Takeshi. "As long as he doesn't bother anyone, I think it's fine."

Takeshi smiled back, but Tsuna could clearly see his eyes held a bit of ire. "After his declaration of 'owning' you, it's pretty hard to relax when he's around."

Oh. Tsuna remembered that day when Mochida-san proudly announced "choosing" Tsuna, whatever the heck that meant, and his feeling of overwhelming embarassment when he heard the proclamation. So much so that he felt it again now just by thinking about it. "I think he's confused," Tsuna mumbled, lowering his head to hide his blush. "He's in love with Kyoko-chan, isn't he?"

Takeshi brought a hand to his head and gave him a pat. "He's sincere about his declaration, Tsuna, and that's what bothers me."

"B-but Kyoko-chan —

"What about me?"

Tsuna turned his head to find Kyoko, Hana and Haru walking behind them, with Kyoko and Haru smiling and Hana frowning, just like always.

"Mochida-san is in love with you — ow!" Tsuna exclaimed while Hana gave him a good slap upside his head.

"But Mochida already announced his affection for you, Tsuna-kun!" Haru grinned.

"Yeah, Tsuna-kun," Kyoko nodded. "We were all there."

Tsuna blushed again and tried to hide his face in his hands. "He's confused!"

"The only one confused here is you, _dame_ -Tsuna," Hana scoffed. "And don't say Mochida is in love with Kyoko-chan. It gives me chills!"

"B-but you're fine with Mochida-san — with me?!" Tsuna refused to say the l-word as he asked in disbelief.

Haru gave him a thumbs up. "Haru thinks it's funny!"

Kyoko smiled wider. "I think it's very sweet."

Hana rolled her eyes. "He's a monkey. I don't care either way. But I gotta admit it _is_ funny."

Takeshi only placed an arm on his shoulders and pulled him closer.

Hana's eyes widened for a fraction of a second before smirking. "I vote for Yamamoto anyway."

Tsuna scrunched his eyebrows. "Vote for what? Are you running for something, Takeshi?"

Hana snickered. "He's certainly aiming for something."

"Hana-chan, stop," Kyoko admonished the other girl but she was giggling with Haru. Sometimes Tsuna couldn't understand these girls. They always had a joke about Takeshi that they refused to tell him, although it seemed Takeshi himself knew what it was because he never asked about it and it didn't bother him. Tsuna tried asking him in the past but Takeshi only laughed.

As if on cue, something which Tsuna also expected when they start giggling about Takeshi, Haru stepped forward and put a hand over her heart. "Haru will be Tsuna-kun's wife anyway!"

Hana giggled harder. "Maybe in an alternate universe."

"You can't keep Tsuna-kun all to yourself," Kyoko added.

"We can share Tsuna-kun, Kyoko-chan," Haru grinned cheekily.

Kyoko's cheeks tinged a bit of pink but she laughed back. "We will have to share with _everyone_."

"I'm not food," Tsuna frowned, finding it best to interject now before their conversation escalated to more disturbing topics.

Hana slapped him on the arm. "Stop acting like one then!"

"How can someone act like food?!"

In the end nobody paid attention to his rhetorical question while Takeshi only chuckled at the girls' antics. Tsuna seriously couldn't understand.

Then they finally reached the rooftop. And found Onii-chan and Hibari Kyouya having a very civil discussion.

"Perfect timing, Sawada!" Onii-chan greeted them, a huge grin on his face. "Hibari and I are discussing your extreme training —

"You interrupted my sleep," Hibari growled, his tonfas already out.

"— and we think it's a good idea to have him spar with you at least once a week — " Onii-chan dodged an attack from Hibari before continuing, "Every Sunday morning after your warm-ups —

"I-I don't think it's a good idea to fight on the rooftop!" Tsuna was panicking now as he watched the Disciplinary Committee leader attack Onii-chan. He glanced back at the girls but they were all watching in awe, while Takeshi's hold on him tightened a little bit.

"Very funny Sawada!" Onii-chan shouted over his skillful dodging of Hibari's attacks. "We won't spar on the rooftop I promise! It's always gonna be the park!"

"I'm talking about your fight _right now_!"

"Don't be silly, we're not fighting!"

"Yeah, technically he's right," Hana snickered. "There's no fight if there's only one attacker." Before Tsuna could respond, Hana suddenly called out to the two older students. "What are you two even doing here?" she yelled, putting her hands on her hips. "This is the _middle school_ building! You should be at the building over there!"

"I can sleep wherever I want," Hibari grumbled as he placed another attack on Onii-chan's torso, which he avoided too.

Takeshi took that as his cue, removing his arm from Tsuna's shoulders. "Don't worry Tsuna, I'll stop them," he smiled before heading over to the two high school students.

"By the way, Hana-chan," Kyoko suddenly spoke up, getting the other two girls' attention and Tsuna's, "I know Yamamoto-kun is our dear friend, but I support my onii-chan!"

Tsuna was confused. "Support? Is he running for something too?"

"Hahi! Haru votes for Hibari-san!"

Hana looked disgusted. " _Hibari_?"

"Haru thinks it's good to have something dangerous. It makes life more exciting and thrilling!"

"What are you three talking about?" Tsuna tried to remember if they needed to vote for the new student council but that already happened a month ago. And besides, Onii-chan and Hibari were high school students so they couldn't run for the same position as Takeshi! Was Takeshi even running for something?

"We're talking about who we support, _dame_ -Tsuna," Hana rolled her eyes at him, as if she expected him to know everything they were talking about. "And _obviously_ it's going to be Yamamoto's victory!"

"No way, Hana-chan! Onii-chan will succeed!"

"Hibari-san will win because he's _supposed_ to win!"

Tsuna shook his head and gave up.

* * *

The next time it happened was two weeks later.

Tsuna had a rather fulfilling sleep; he slept on time and woke up on time feeling energized for the day ahead. Eyes still closed, he stretched out his arms to bump against something _hairy_. Then there was a low grumble and a shuffling on his bed before everything went still again.

Tsuna froze in an instant. He figured the thing he bumped against was the person's head, and said person said something and turned around. How he didn't sense the figure to be there in the first place eluded him, but that didn't matter so much now. He was now very, very sure there was _someone_ sleeping on his bed and wasn't leaving anytime soon — even though it was already seven in the morning.

Would he risk it? He could feel the person's back against him so he had an advantage; he could easily get away if he wanted to. But would it be worth the risk? Maybe mailing his mom would be better so there would be two against one, but Tsuna didn't want to put his mom in a dangerous position! Maybe handling this situation alone was worth it, after all —

So Tsuna turned around and was surprised to find a lump of blankets beside him.

Where did the person go . . . ?

* * *

Tsuna never believed in the supernatural.

He _absolutely_ refused to believe it was a ghost.

"What's up, Tsuna?" Takeshi broke him off from his thoughts as they ate their lunch together at the rooftop.

"D-do you believe in ghosts, Takeshi?" Tsuna mumbled into his _bento._

"Ah! They exist, don't they?" The guy grinned and Tsuna couldn't help but feel more apprehensive than he originally was. "Did you know there's both good and bad ghosts?"

"I — I don't really think they exist —

"You just haven't seen one yet. You will though, eventually."

Tsuna gulped. "A-are you trying to scare me, Takeshi?!"

Takeshi raised his eyebrows. "But ghosts aren't scary."

Tsuna knew he sometimes couldn't trust Takeshi to have normal people thoughts. But that didn't matter because ghosts were _absolutely_ not real.

There were no such things as beings that traveled through metaphysical planes.

* * *

The third — and last — time it happened was a month later.

It was raining for a few hours then on a quiet Saturday evening. Tsuna had fallen asleep in the middle of reading manga and was sprawled carelessly on his bed when there was a dip next to him, his gut feeling waking him up to warn him.

Tsuna didn't move nor open his eyes. But what was peculiar about it was he felt drips of water plop on his arm one droplet at a time. Tsuna was very, very positive ghosts shouldn't get wet and that could only mean it was a _real_ person next to him.

That made things far scarier for Tsuna. What kind of person had the ability to vanish in a blink of an eye?

Time to put his combat training to good use, Tsuna thought as he immediately scampered out of bed and raised up his arms in defense.

But he was too late. The last thing he saw was a long, black cape disappearing through the window — Tsuna was sure he locked that before he fell asleep — and as if to mock him, the person glanced back, a white mask perfectly covering the face before completely exiting the window. Tsuna snapped out of his daze and he ran after the strange person, and as he gripped the edges of his window, he found there was no one outside. The rain was still pouring through the night.

Tsuna could summarize his entire experience in three simple words: _what the hell_?

* * *

He never told anyone about it. It was a glitch, his mind justified it for him and he went about his life as normal. He refused to let it bother him and he even put in effort to forget about it. It was his utmost refusal to believe strange things occurred that helped him stay sane.

Besides, he had more important things to worry about. Like school, for example, and tending to his friends.

Speaking of his friends . . .

"W-what happened here?" Tsuna gulped as he looked over the beaten forms of Takeshi, Onii-chan and Hibari. Well, Takeshi and Onii-chan were sitting next to each other while Hibari was seated far, far away, but Tsuna could see he was nursing his right arm.

"Hahaha! We just had a little spar, Tsuna! Don't worry about it," Takeshi grinned as he stuffed his hands inside his pockets.

"Yeah! Count it as extreme training!" Onii-chan laughed.

"B-broken bones and blood everywhere isn't just a _little_ spar!"

"EXTREME little spar!"

"That doesn't make any sense!"

Tsuna couldn't understand why they always had to injure themselves. He couldn't understand how it reached the point that they were barely conscious of their surroundings, with how Takeshi was struggling to hold his smile and how Onii-chan was having trouble sitting upright.

"Let's go to the doctor," Tsuna pleaded, frozen on his place as he stood over them. He wanted to kneel before them and pull them up but something was stopping him and —

"We'll be okay, Tsuna," Takeshi's voice sounded strained, just a tiny little bit. "You should take care of yourself first." He then gestured towards Tsuna's leg.

Tsuna looked down and stared at his leg. He had a cast on it.

Okay, so he experienced a little accident recently, but that didn't mean he was not qualified anymore to worry about his friends!

He then saw Hibari stand up and limp away, but not before giving him a good glare from afar. This was far too serious than Tsuna imagined. Hibari was _limping_?

"What the hell happened?" he asked again to the two persons in front of him, but Onii-chan was already drifting in and out of consciousness while Takeshi held onto him to keep him from falling over.

Then Onii-chan lost consciousness completely and Tsuna was about to grab onto him, leg be damned, but Takeshi looked at Tsuna with an expression that made his heart stop for a second. "We banished some ghosts."

. . . _What?_

Takeshi helped himself and Onii-chan up. With a final smile at Tsuna, he added, "You don't have to worry anymore, Tsuna."

Tsuna never tried asking about it again. It was a glitch.


	27. Conformity

_uploaded on October 31, 2015_

So umm . . . I'm sorry for the previous chapter. Still, thanks for reading this crazy story!

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Conformity**

* * *

Reborn had a day off today. He wasn't confident with Tsuna's brewing skills so he advised Uncle Kawahira to never let Tsuna touch the machines without supervision. Which meant to say that coffee orders for today would be unavailable.

That was fine, Tsuna thought. Coffee in Kawahira's Baked Goodies weren't a popular order yet anyway. Maybe the customers wouldn't miss it.

This was the least of his worries though.

Tsuna knew it was a crazy idea. He shouldn't be so presumptuous to think _this_ had something to do with Reborn being out, but Tsuna couldn't imagine a different reason for it. No matter how much he mulled it over and think it through, it was the only conclusion he ends up with and that bothered him to no end. Unless it was all a very, very big coincidence?

As he tried to analyze his predicament, Colonnello pulled him closer, the guy's arm relaxed on his shoulders. "I'm so glad to see you again, kora!"

Tsuna forced himself to smile. "T-thanks?"

Colonnello grinned wider as he leaned his face closer to Tsuna's. "How convenient that Reborn isn't here! I guess we're really fated to be together —

A hand — not Tsuna's — slapped Colonnello's face away and Tsuna let out his breath he didn't know he was holding. The guy's face was _too close_.

"Pull yourself together, you idiot," the other occupant of the room growled, slapping Colonnello again at the back of his head. "You're damaging the goods."

 _Goods_? Tsuna thought in bewilderment.

The person grabbed his face by the chin and tilted it side by side. "I like your face."

 _W-well, this person is certainly straightforward._ Tsuna remained quiet and smiled back as he silently formed ways on how to escape unscathed. The person in front of him seemed to have caught on and she dropped her hand from his face, then smirked at his guilty face. "Very girly."

Tsuna didn't know if that was an insult or a compliment.

"Oi Lal! Stop using your dirty hands on Tsuna —

"Too noisy," _Lal_ grumbled before giving Colonnello another hit on the head. "I only dragged you here with me so you can carry the cakes. _Get going!_ "

Colonnello, as cool as he was during the first time Tsuna met him, was completely drained out of his fight as he balanced three boxes of cakes on his arms. So . . . this guy was the one whipped after all. And he had the nerve to call Reborn whipped the last time — something Tsuna never thought about, of course! The guy did his best to still remain _cool_ though by giving Tsuna a somewhat refreshing smile — despite carrying three boxes of cakes that almost towered over his face — that Tsuna couldn't help but feel embarrassed and look away from thinking he was uncool.

He was cool.

Then Lal destroyed that image by stepping in between them. This person was also cool, Tsuna thought, but in a completely different way. Like how she managed to make Colonnello obey her, it was kind of amazing. But wait — did that mean this person also knew Reborn? Somehow Tsuna felt nervous all of a sudden. Could she also control Reborn too . . . ? That would be kind of silly but honestly Tsuna would be very impressed if that was true.

"Thank you very much for your patronage," Tsuna remembered to say as the two made their way out of the shop.

Lal looked back and gave him a smile of her own. "We'll see each other again soon, Tsunayoshi."

Tsuna was pretty sure his face, his full name, and his home address was advertised maybe in a big billboard in the middle of Namimori.

* * *

Tsuna knew it was too coincidental to be a coincidence.

For the first time ever in his time working at the cake shop, people entered the shop and looked around, and some even purchased cake.

 _Normal people_.

Sure, it was only ten customers for the past two hours, but still — Kawahira's Baked Goodies have normal people customers! It was a miracle! Tsuna's belief that the cake shop had potential to be very popular was suddenly on its way to become a reality.

And it happened when Reborn wasn't here.

Then again maybe it was really all a big coincidence.

* * *

"Tsuna!"

Dino was at the door with one of his bodyguards. Tsuna instantly recognized the bodyguard as _Romario_ , based on Dino's description of the guy in his messages, something along the lines of "a mother hen and a worrywart with glasses". The guy seemed to fit the description to the dot.

Dino had already made his way to Tsuna's counter before he even realized it. "How's my cute _kouhai_?" Dino grinned as he ruffled Tsuna's hair affectionately.

Tsuna smiled up at him, feeling a little shy. "I'm doing fine. But now that you're here, you have to fulfill your promise," he grinned wider.

Dino laughed sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head. "Oh man, you got me . . . but don't worry, I'm here to buy some cake."

Tsuna made a show of taking out his phone while the older guy was watching him. Then he opened the messaging app and selected his conversation with Dino. "Let's see . . . first, let me count the number of times you promised to buy cake —

"Oi oi! That's not how it works!"

"But you can afford it anyway!" Tsuna rolled his eyes before smiling. "Fine. I'll let it go for now."

Dino leaned closer and poked one Tsuna's face. "Is this really you, Tsuna? You're becoming cheeky," he chuckled.

"I just want the cake shop to prosper."

"Ahem," Romario coughed into his hand, turning both of their attention towards him. "Boss, we have a schedule to keep."

Tsuna was suddenly made aware that yeah, they weren't alone in the cake shop, and this man just . . . essentially . . . witnessed him _flirting_ with Dino — _oh my god._ Tsuna wanted to crouch behind the counter and hide for the rest of his life. He seriously hadn't meant to do that! Like, in person! It just seemed so natural to talk like that with Dino when they were texting or talking through the phone and then it happened today and —

"You're right, thanks for reminding me Romario." When Tsuna looked up at Dino, the guy looked so embarrassed that Tsuna felt _his_ embarrassment go up a notch and he bowed his head to hide his furiously blushing cheeks. If there was some way to forget about it Tsuna wished he knew how!

"Actually, that's one of the reasons I'm here," Dino was back to business as he made a move to look around the shop. "But first, I have to say this place looks different than how I remembered it."

Tsuna had to go back to business too. After calming himself down, he explained, "Oh yeah, the shop had new furniture and changes in furniture arrangement."

"It didn't expand?" Dino raised his eyebrows. "The shop looks bigger than before . . ."

"Nope," Tsuna shook his head.

"Are you sure —

"Uncle Kawahira said it's the effect of the furniture arrangements," Tsuna smiled.

Dino laughed. "I see! That perfectly explains it!"

"Yeah, it does!" Tsuna wanted to cry.

"And are those coffee machines behind you? I don't remember the shop serving specialty coffee."

At the mention of coffee, Tsuna was reminded of Reborn and how Dino just coincidentally showed up when _that guy_ wasn't around, especially after taking in the fact that Dino had only been to the shop once before. How bizarre. "Yeah, but the barista's on his day off and the machines are in maintenance." Tsuna felt pathetic making up such a lame excuse just to avoid making coffee, but Reborn was a monster and he specifically ordered Tsuna _not_ to touch the machines when he wasn't around.

"Don't worry about it. I don't drink coffee," Dino smiled, then as if he remembered something, his eyes suddenly widened in recollection. "The smell of coffee takes me back too. The aroma here somewhat reminds of the coffee beans we used to have back home."

Tsuna was confused. "But you just said you don't drink coffee?"

"Ahaha yes! The coffee wasn't for me. It's for my former sadistic tutor."

A chill passed through Tsuna's spine. For some reason or another, those words from Dino left him with a funny feeling in his stomach. "S-sadistic tutor?"

"Yup. Before I became the CFO for our family business, I had to do this training first on how to become more 'business-minded' whatever that meant. Then they hired this guy who was a big sadist but, I gotta admit he's very thorough and effective. Anyway, he's addicted to coffee, he liked it as _best_ as possible so we always had to import the coffee beans from Italy . . ."

Dino continued to tell some stories about his training and coffee but that was when Tsuna's brain stopped functioning properly. Why did the guy Dino was describing sounded awfully similar to _Reborn_? And if it was, why would he be training Dino, a business man-slash-owner of a company? Reborn's a freaking _barista_ , for heaven's sake! He wasn't some — some _trainer_ , or something!

"But I'll stop boring you with my stories," Dino stopped him from his thoughts and turned all attention back to him. "I'm ready to buy some cake! I'm actually thinking of taking five cakes of different flavors."

 _Crap._ Tsuna wanted to ask Dino for the tutor's name but the topic had changed now! It wouldn't be appropriate anymore and Tsuna would only seem like a creep. He lost his chance to ask. Maybe he could bring it up later . . .

As Tsuna assisted him with his cake purchase, there was something else that nagged him at the back of his mind. Tsuna didn't know why Dino called him a _kouhai_. It wasn't like they worked for the same company.

* * *

"I'm so glad the shop's getting more customers now," Tsuna shared his thoughts to Uncle Kawahira as they both lounged at the staff room to rest before heading home. "This is good, right, Uncle Kawahira?"

"Of course it is, Tsuna-kun. Will you be able to handle the additional load?"

Tsuna scratched his cheek. "W-well, when I first applied as a cashier, I'm actually expecting this amount of customers anyway."

Uncle Kawahira gave him a smile that made Tsuna's heart beat faster in _terror_. How the hell could a smile do that?! "Are you sure about that, Tsuna-kun?"

Tsuna tried his best to mitigate his panic. "Um, I guess so. But of course if you have any plans . . ." He looked over at the shop owner who was only watching him with a smile. Tsuna's panic levels raised tenfold but he told himself to _calm the heck down._ "U-uh, I, um, are you going to hire another employee to share the work?"

"Great idea, Tsuna-kun!" _What?!_ "I'm going to think about it."

That wasn't _his_ idea, Tsuna thought in extreme confusion and bewilderment. He already said he could handle the load, and he was only asking about that since Uncle Kawahira looked like he was thinking of doing it anyway. It was so similar like that time when Uncle Kawahira asked him about their drink selection and Tsuna brought up the coffee. He shouldn't have any input in the cake shop's progress, he was only the cashier!

"I value all my employees as my equal," Uncle Kawahira explained Tsuna's unasked question, once again displaying his ability to read minds. Tsuna's fight-or-flight response was on a frenzy.

Then again, maybe today was just very big on coincidences . . . coincidentally. Yeah, that happened sometimes, Tsuna wanted to believe.

He _had_ to believe or he'd go crazy.


	28. Dessert

_uploaded on November 10, 2015_

Thanks to everyone who are still reading. I try my best to entertain you guys with Tsuna's demise.

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Dessert**

* * *

It was Tsuna's turn to have a day off. For one reason or another.

He certainly didn't request for it, but Uncle Kawahira _wanted_ him to get a day off. "It's a paid day off, anyway," the man had urged him through the phone; he called Tsuna's house as soon as Tsuna got home from work and set one foot inside the door. For one, Tsuna didn't know why Uncle Kawahira just didn't tell him while he was still in the shop, and two, Uncle Kawahira had very impressive timing as he called at the precise moment Tsuna arrived home. _Yes_ , it was only impeccable timing and not related to psychic abilities at all.

So, while Tsuna laid down on their living room couch, he mulled over the possible things he could possibly do tomorrow. It was a Friday too which was the usual day for a night out, right? Especially if one had friends to go out with.

Tsuna weighed his options. His friends were — Takeshi, but he was in Kishiki; Ryohei, who would be busy teaching; Kyoko was in Kishiki too, Hana was in Tokyo and Haru was . . . _somewhere_ , Tsuna had already honestly forgotten which place her family moved to. They had to move around a lot because of her dad's job but Tsuna was pretty sure they were in Seoul the last time.

Okay.

He still had other friends. Hayato . . . would probably be busy with his job. Lambo had school with Fuuta and I-Pin. Enma would be in school too and for that matter, Chrome would be too. Kyouya would be patrolling and Mukuro . . . did he consider Mukuro a _friend_? Anyway, Mukuro had his cafe to run with Chikusa and Ken.

 _Okay._

There were still some friends. But Dino would be busy with his company. Shouichi and Spanner would be in their universities, and even though they would be at the cake shop on a Friday afternoon, they would be busy making their project. Kensuke was back in Tokyo. That left the Varia but Tsuna would die first before hanging out with them willingly.

Okay. So he was going to be alone on a Friday. He could deal. He could spend it like the last time he had a day off, when he was walking at Namimori Station and then met Kensuke after a year of not seeing him and experiencing his obsession and —

 _That wasn't it,_ his brain told him. He did something else during that day when he was at Namimori Station.

Kensuke also said the same thing last week; they met at that specific spot —

Where there was an antique shop. _That's it!_ But it was still closed temporarily and Tsuna had to wonder if they already opened after the last time he saw it. He should go check it out, he was pretty curious what was inside.

That was one task on his list.

It was going to be a long day.

* * *

"Good morning, Tsu-kun!" His mom greeted him after he entered the dining area. "What would you like for breakfast?"

"'Morning, mom. I'll have whatever, I'm not in a hurry," Tsuna replied, sitting down on a chair.

"How about work?"

"Uncle Kawahira said it's a day off for me."

Nana's eyes widened. "A day off — OH! Are you planning on doing something today, Tsu-kun?"

Tsuna remembered his planned trip for the antique shop but that shouldn't take more than half-an-hour, anyway, so he had plenty of time to spare. "Nope, nothing much. Do you have an errand for me?"

Nana covered her eyes with her hands. "Oh my, my Tsu-kun is so responsible . . . "

Tsuna could feel his veins popping out of his face. "If you're just going to tease me then I might change my mind."

"Of course not! I'm _really_ glad you're growing up a responsible adult," Nana smiled. "Anyway, perfect timing!" She took out a piece of paper from her apron. "I was going to do this myself but if I could ask you to do it . . . "

Tsuna smiled back. "As long as it won't endanger my life then I could probably do it."

* * *

This endangered his life, Tsuna concluded.

 _An hour ago . . ._

"One of our neighborhood friends, Bianchi-san, wanted to promote her made-to-order, homemade pastries," Nana explained as she sat together with Tsuna and ate their breakfast together. "She's a busy woman but when cooking she would always find the time to do it! It really moved me so when we're brainstorming ideas on how to market her creations, I suggested a simple giving away of tissue packs with her products pictured on it!"

Tsuna nodded after swallowing his food. "Simple yet effective."

"Ah, and to help her out even more, I volunteered to do the trial run. The tissue packs she ordered already came in so we figured today would be the best day to start it off." She pulled out a tissue pack from her apron and showed it to Tsuna.

Tsuna inspected it. "Name, contact numbers, address . . . good job. And the food looks good too."

Nana giggled. "I know right."

"Have you tasted the food though? Does it also taste good?"

". . . It's very exotic."

"I think giving away samples would be good too, maybe a little bit of cookie or something," Tsuna mumbled before downing his orange juice, "At least for those who are really interested in ordering. Have you thought about where to do this?"

Nana's smile faltered a little. "We were thinking of the plaza."

"I suggest the train station, more people come and go there. At the plaza, people usually go there to eat so advertising food when people are full would lessen their chances of getting interested."

"You're really taking this seriously," Nana's eyebrows furrowed as she looked at him. Tsuna didn't know how _he_ knew but it seemed as if his mom was looking at him in a different light than usual. "I was only poking fun at you when I told you I'm making you do the giveaway."

Tsuna grinned. "I got time to kill anyway, and if I'm going to do this I'd like to know the details beforehand."

Nana's smile returned and was wider than ever. "Ah! There's also this thing . . ."

 _And back to now._

In any case, he agreed to do this even after knowing this was part of the original plan, and his mom didn't force him to do it. But why did he agree? Maybe because he figured it _could_ be a better way of advertising the food (there _was_ a sample available too; he tasted it and concluded it wasn't so bad) and it was also attention-grabbing, which was the purpose of advertisements in the first place.

 _But where did you get the wig, Tsu-kun?_

 _O-oh, a friend left it in my bag and never asked for it back._ Partly true.

 _Mama is pretty sad her_ son _has a slimmer waist than her._

 _I haven't eaten yet._

 _But we just had breakfast, Tsu-kun!_

This was what _Bianchi-san_ had in mind? Tsuna was a bit glad his mom didn't have to wear _this_ for her. On the other hand, _he_ had to wear it himself but he firmly believed this was a better alternative than letting his mom wear _the thing_.

Said thing was a fluffy dress oddly reminiscent of a macaron — _the dress will remind the people of cute and sweet macarons_ — complete with a macaron-themed print. Its length was enough to show some leg, ending a few centimeters above the knee, which Tsuna covered up with tights. His mom completed his look with boots and the wig which found its way out of Tsuna's closet.

 _Soooo cute!_ His mom had squealed while taking pictures in different angles. Tsuna couldn't blame her, he did look quite cute. _Ahem._

This would be the death of him.

And he had to suggest giving away tissue packs at the train station, didn't he?

* * *

 _So far, so good._ Tsuna glanced at his phone and found it had been around an hour since he started giving away the packs. He had a little spot in the train station, near one of the entrances, where he stood next to his stall where the sample macarons were stored. Most people who passed him were very receptive and curious and a few even expressed interest in ordering, so Tsuna was pretty confident with their success. _So far, so good._

That was, until somebody he knew showed up.

 _Is it time for his patrols already?_

Tsuna saw Kyouya from afar, casually strolling towards the station. Tsuna had never paid attention but looking at the guy from the distance, he realized the guy didn't need to exude his dangerous aura when it wasn't needed. He looked liked a normal Namimori citizen, save for his billowing cloak, having a laid-back walk around town. It was a very refreshing look at Kyouya that Tsuna felt a little bit of panic mixed with confusion.

Next thing he knew, the guy was already in front of his stall.

Tsuna gulped.

"This . . . is new," Kyouya mumbled, looking around in his stall.

Tsuna never planned this far ahead. This was Hibari freaking Kyouya, he must have already figured out it was _him_ wearing a wig and a dress! He considered faking his voice and pretending to be somebody else, but Tsuna wasn't really good at pretending and he wasn't confident with his voice-acting skills, plus Kyouya would get mad if he thought he could fool him. He could also just _not_ _talk_ but Kyouya would get mad if he thought he was getting ignored. Ah, either way, Tsuna would be bitten to death.

 _Calm down._ There was one thing Tsuna was confident with and that was his dodging and evasion skills. If worst came to worst, he would avoid getting bitten to death and bring everything he could with him and then run away.

He could do this. "It's only temporary," he smiled, avoiding any mentions of his identity and knowing Kyouya's identity. "Please have a tissue and you can also try our sample macarons!"

Kyouya's steel grey eyes landed on him and narrowed. "I don't like sweets."

Tsuna held out a pack. "Have a tissue anyway?"

Surprisingly, Kyouya snatched the tissue pack from his hand and shoved it in his pocket. "This better be temporary . . . you wearing a dress disturbs the peace of Namimori, little animal."

 _Crap._

 _He knew! He really knew!_ Tsuna felt the blood rush to his cheeks and he could feel his whole body trembling. What now? Would he get bitten to death for disturbing the peace?!

"We will discuss this _later_ ," Kyouya continued, taking out his tonfas. Tsuna's eyes widened at the action and he prepared to dodge when Kyouya rushed to a different direction, and when Tsuna's eyes followed his target he found _Mukuro_ kufufu-ing and laughing away. He also had a phone out.

 _Crap._

As the two of them disappeared into the distance, Tsuna somewhat hoped he was infallible. The last time he had to pretend to be somebody else was when the Varia unwittingly cornered him in the yogurt shop and it had worked perfectly. Granted, he was seated very far and only had to wear the wig. Maybe the dress broke the illusion? Or the close distance let them recognize him? But if Mukuro was standing far away then the second part didn't apply to him. That meant he was recognizable even from the distance?

 _Crap._

What if the Varia recognized him back then and just . . . didn't say a word about it, didn't acknowledge it out loud or didn't want to waste their attention on him? _Dammit._ Suddenly all his confidence was slipping away . . .

"Ah! A cute girl!"

Tsuna almost jumped from the sudden compliment and his whole body flushed red, and when he looked to see who said it, it was a guy with long, purplish-pink hair who undoubtedly looked more cute than him.

The guy then gave him a huge grin as he leant on the stall. "I have a weakness for slender legs —

A huge, towering guy showed up and smacked the other guy upside the head. "That's not how you pick-up girls, you idiot Nosaru," he grumbled before pulling _Nosaru_ away, who was then whining about _at least let me get her number_ _before pulling me away, Tazaru-aniki!_

Ah. _Ahem._ That was enough to get his confidence back, Tsuna mused, as he smoothed down his dress and continued passing out tissue packs with a smile on his face.

* * *

Another two hours passed without incident. Tsuna looked at the remaining tissue packs and macarons and estimated he only had about an half-an-hour left before he runs out, so he made sure to inform his mom (through messaging) so the people in-charge of closing the stall could prepare on time.

As he sent out his message, he noticed the time and found it was about time high schools were out (for students who were members of the go-home clubs), and it was also around lunch time for Kawahira's Baked Goodies. _His_ lunchtime, at least; Reborn sometimes took his either earlier or later —

Tsuna froze.

He quickly scrambled for the messaging app and typed a new message. _Mom, I realized I'm actually out! So I'm going home now_ —

"Tsuna?"

Tsuna's fingers stalled on the screen as he looked up and saw a familiar face.

"E-Enma, hello!" he smiled as best as he could, pocketing his phone reluctantly while keeping his eyes on the guy. "What brings you to the train station?"

Enma raised his hand to show a box of cake. "Adel wanted some cake . . . um, what is this?" He pointed at the stall.

"O-oh yeah! Have a tissue," Tsuna handed Enma a pack, which the guy took without hesitation. "I'm helping a friend advertise her pastries. Want to try a macaron?"

Enma stared.

Tsuna waved his hand in front of Enma's face. "Enma?"

Enma's eyes widened and his face turned red. "Uh, yeah?"

"Wanna try a macaron?"

"I'm more curious about the dress . . ."

"W-well, the idea was to grab people's attention and retain the thought, so I'm wearing a macaron-themed dress."

"Can I take a picture?"

"WHAT?!"

"No?"

There was something in Enma's eyes that Tsuna found it hard to refuse, and besides, the guy was sincere when he asked. Being straightforward was always an out-of-character move from Enma and for him to do it must take a lot out of him. "Since you asked . . ."

"Thanks, Tsuna."

"In exchange you have to take a tissue pack for each of your friends," Tsuna showed him the last basket of tissues, and Enma gingerly picked up six packs (Tsuna counted). "Okay, let's take that picture."

When all was said and done, when Enma got his pictures and when Enma went home happily, Tsuna sighed and looked at the remaining tissue packs. There were still several more but he thought he could get it over within a few minutes. He didn't really like the prospect of lying to his mom about finishing up when he wasn't done yet, so at least he should aim to give away the packs as fast as he could.

Things weren't always smooth-sailing, though. For example, Lambo had teased him and when he was gone, Byakuran appeared on his stead, who was way worse with the teasing and _touching_ that Tsuna had to threaten to call the police before he stopped and left too. At least giving away the tissues was done in no time at all and he would be able to leave as soon as possible.

Tsuna checked the samples and his tissue packs; only one remaining for each. _Thank goodness,_ his plight was over —

A hand reached for the macaron, carefully balancing it within his fingers before getting brought up to the mouth. "Not bad."

Tsuna's heart skipped a beat. He refused to take a look who it was but if he was positive with the voice, and hopefully he wasn't, _this would be the death of him_.

Instead, his head still bowed, Tsuna reached inside his basket and held out the last tissue pack.

"Ah? I didn't know this is the proper way to give away ads."

 _T-this guy —_

"At least let me see your face."

Tsuna already lost several seconds ago. Prepared with a glare, he brought his head up and directed that glare to Reborn, who was smirking at him, the remaining half of the macaron placed between his fingers.

"Thank you, _signorina_ ," Reborn's smirk widened as he took the tissue pack from Tsuna's hand and walked away casually, leaving Tsuna a blushing mess.

As Tsuna calmed himself down, he realized he was glad. His errand was done. Now he only had to wait for the guys responsible for the stall.

"T-T-T-Tsuna-sama?!" Hayato gaped at him with his mouth opened so wide one would think it would reach the floor. "I thought Mama would be the person here!"

Tsuna still felt calm as he glanced to Hayato, who was wearing a track suit with his hair tied up. "I took my mom's place. How did you know that?" Seriously, at this point of time Tsuna wouldn't be surprised if all of his friends knew what he did today before he got home.

"I'm responsible for closing the stall . . . Mama didn't tell you? Bianchi's my older sister."

Tsuna thought he'd have a long, serious talk with his mom when he gets home.

"B-but first, Tsuna-sama . . . can I take a picture?"

* * *

It was _done._

Tsuna was free from his errand and he had that long, serious talk with his mom who, hopefully, understood that it was always important to tell _all_ the details involving his task, including the other persons involved. He was back to wearing his normal clothes and was wandering back to the train station to look at that antique shop, you know, the thing he wanted to do today.

The late afternoon sky looked quite peaceful, which was the complete opposite of his predicament right now.

"Little animal," Kyouya confronted him before he reached the station. "Let's proceed with our discussion about you disturbing the peace."

Tsuna could feel the sweat dripping off his face. "R-right here, right now?! In the middle of the sidewalk?!"

Kyouya brandished his tonfas out. "That dress should only be worn in private . . . Tetsu will give you a list of acceptable locations. For now, you will be bitten to death." And without wasting any second, he dashed forward to Tsuna, who, through sheer intuition alone, dodged the attack as he skidded away.

"Hiiii! You'll give me a heart attack!" Tsuna yelped, clutching his chest as he didn't wait for a reply and bolted away, knowing that Kyouya was dead on his tracks. This wasn't how he planned the rest of his afternoon!

* * *

Kusakabe had to intervene at some point as they were running all around Namimori. Thankfully he managed to convince Kyouya to stop and whatever he said was already lost to Tsuna. Kyouya _hmphed_ and walked away while Kusakabe went nearer to him.

"Sawada . . . are you still alive?" Kusakabe held out a hand, which Tsuna took as the guy helped him up from the pavement.

"I'll live," Tsuna replied in between breaths, a hand over his heart. "Kyouya left?"

"Kyou-san has other herbivores to bite to death." Kusakabe took out a piece of paper from his pocket. "Here is the list of acceptable locations."

Tsuna's face met his palm. "So he was serious about that." He took the list anyway and looked it over. The list composed of:

 _Little animal's house, The Committee Chairman's office_

. . .

"I hope you find the list adequate, Sawada."

Tsuna wanted to cry himself to sleep.

* * *

After running for so long, finally Tsuna could get back to the train station and check out the antique shop. It was already dark but he supposed there was still a chance the shop was open.

"Tsuna!"

An arm rested itself on Tsuna's shoulders.

"I'm so excited for our date tomorrow I got here too early," Takeshi laughed.

Oh, right . . . he had a plan to go to Kishiki tomorrow and visit the university. But that — "It's not really a date," Tsuna mumbled, hanging his head to hide his already red face.

But now he _really_ wouldn't be able to go to the antique shop anymore. Oh well, he could do it some other time.


	29. Progress

_uploaded on December 05, 2015_

I don't have an excuse for the untimely update. But, here's a chapter with lots of things going on. Lots and lots. Not necessarily plot-related, but still lots.

I hope you enjoy this chapter.

* * *

 **Progress**

* * *

"Good morning, Tsu-kun!" Tsuna heard his mom greet him from kitchen. He thought she was extra lively today; it was only five in the morning but she was already awake, moving about in the kitchen if the clanging sounds of kitchenware were telling. "Would you like to eat first before your morning run?"

"I'm good, thanks," Tsuna smiled at her as soon as he entered the dining area. Just as he suspected, his mom was already halfway through preparing a _feast._ "What's with all the food?" he asked lightheartedly, beelining for the fridge to get himself a glass of grape juice. "Don't tell me dad's visiting?" She always prepared a truckload of food whenever that man remembered to visit them.

Nana giggled. "Hardly. The food will be five times more when your Papa goes home. Today I'm just really, really happy!"

His mom's cheeriness always rubbed off on him, Tsuna mused, as he laughed a little bit too. "Oh? Did something good happen?"

"This is a celebration!"

"Is it somebody's birthday?"

Nana wiped a tear from her eye. "My Tsu-kun's growing up."

Tsuna frowned. "But it's not my birthday?"

"Of course not. But you're all grown up!" She turned away from him and continued stirring the pot. "I'm just really glad to know you're an adult now."

"Adult —

"You're going on a _date_!" Nana squealed as she did little jumps.

Tsuna paled. "Mom, I think you misunderstood —

"I just knew, one way or another, that you'll enter the realm of adulthood very soon. And to think it will be with Takeshi-kun! Oh my oh my! Mama approves!"

Tsuna turned from white to red in an instant. "Mom, you got the wrong idea!"

It was Nana's turn to frown. "Are you not going out today with Takeshi-kun?"

Suddenly the floor looked very interesting to Tsuna. "Um, we _will_ head out later. So, yes?"

"And are you not going to eat out during that time?"

"W-well, we would probably go hungry in the middle of our trip. So maybe we'll grab some snacks."

"And are you not heading to Takeshi's place?"

"I kind of promised I'm going to check out his dorm —

Tsuna froze.

"Mom."

"Yes, Tsu-kun?"

"This _is_ a date, isn't it?"

Nana sniggered. "Please tell me all about it when you get home."

"But I still think you have the wrong idea with _entering the realm of adulthood_!" Tsuna shouted over his shoulder as he headed outside, determined to run his fluster away. His mom was messing with his head again and he refused to let it bother him. He didn't want to weird Takeshi out with his awkwardness!

* * *

Doing his morning runs always made him feel better, Tsuna mused, as he took a break at the park and watched the sun finally rise up from the horizon. He was considering contacting Ryohei to ask him to do daily spars with him again when his phone beeped with a new message.

"Good morning Tsuna!" It was from Takeshi.

"Good morning too, Takeshi. Don't you think it's a little too early? We're meeting up at 8 AM, right?" Tsuna replied, ignoring the strange flutterings at the pits of his stomach.

The reply was almost instantaneous. "Yup. But I want to keep up with my batting practice so I'm up early." Tsuna remembered Takeshi was going to try out for his university's baseball team. "The batting center's still closed though . . . so I'm at the park practicing."

Reading the last line, Tsuna felt his embarrassment wash over his entire body. He was almost afraid of raising up his head from looking at his phone because he _knew_ what he would see, but . . . Tsuna did so anyway and was not surprised to find Takeshi a few meters away, smiling that Takeshi-smile and waving at him, the other hand clutching his bat. Suddenly, his brain found this the appropriate time to make him remember his mom's words — leaving Tsuna a huge, blushing mess.

"You okay, Tsuna?" Takeshi asked as soon as he stepped in front of him. "You look a little red."

Tsuna laughed nervously. "Just a bit tired."

"You sure?" Takeshi prodded on as he placed his spare hand on Tsuna's forehead. "If you're sick, maybe we should stay home."

Tsuna's eyes widened at the contact and he couldn't help but get a tiny bit redder. "I-I'm fine, Takeshi! Really!"

Takeshi smiled. "You can rest at home and I could take care of you?"

Tsuna thought he was going to melt. He was going to melt and merge with the ground and never come back up again. "I'm just red because I just finished running! Yeah! I'm fine."

"Well, I trust you," Takeshi chuckled, finally letting go of Tsuna's forehead. "Since we're together now, would you like to have breakfast with me?"

 _Childhood best friends,_ Tsuna reminded himself. "Oh yeah! My mom cooked up a feast for breakfast. You should come to our house!"

"Oh? Is it somebody's birthday?"

"No . . . my mom just loves cooking." _One part of the reason, at least._ The other part was something Tsuna didn't want to disclose.

"Cool. I love Mama's food!"

"Don't we all?" Tsuna smiled.

* * *

After having breakfast (while simultaneously being praised by his mom for _taking the initiative_ , whatever that meant) they went about their ways to get ready for their trip. They decided to meet up at the train station by eight in the morning.

But things weren't always smooth-sailing like how he planned it to be.

"Good morning, Tsuna!" Ryohei boomed from several meters away, earning strange looks from bystanders. "Going out?"

Tsuna tried his best to fight off his embarrassment as he scurried towards Ryohei. "Good morning too, Ryohei," he mumbled, then pulled him along so they could walk off from the watchers. "I'm on my way to the train station. You?"

"I was about to buy breakfast but I guess you're now bringing me to wherever you're going!"

Tsuna almost choked on nothing. "Y-you got it wrong! I just wanted to find a peaceful place." _Without prodding people._

Ryohei grinned. "Since we're both busy, don't let me keep you. Even though I want to! HAHAHAHA!"

 _Bad for the heart, bad for the heart, think of Kyoko!_ Tsuna was chanting in his head but he didn't even know what these words meant to him in the first place. What did Kyoko have to do with anything right now? Sometimes his line of thoughts made no sense to him. "Thanks Ryohei. I'll see you around?"

Ryohei waved as he walked away. "Just let me know if you're in a pinch. I'm only a phone call away!"

Tsuna didn't think he'd be in "a pinch" if he was with Takeshi, but at least it was nice to know that Ryohei had his back. Anyway, he should hurry up and head to the train station, time was running out quickly and he didn't want to make Takeshi wait too long.

But again, things weren't always smooth-sailing like in his imagination.

"Well, well, well," Ken appeared from somewhere, followed by Chikusa who looked nothing short of bored. "Look who showed up, Kaki-pi!"

"Tsuna," Chikusa replied nonchalantly even as he made a bow towards Tsuna, which Tsuna returned in fluster.

"S-so, where are you guys headed?" Tsuna attempted small talk to avoid the awkward atmosphere while they stood in the middle of the sidewalk.

"We're heading to the cafe for our shift," Chikusa answered before Ken could let one syllable out, leaving him with his mouth wide open and looking stupid.

Tsuna chuckled nervously as he eyed the look of confusion and anger at Ken's face. "Um, as for me I'm going to the train station —

"So it's at the opposite direction," Chikusa cut him off while Ken was about to say something.

Tsuna's eyes darted between the two, once again noting the growing ire on the other's face. "Y-yeah, it is. I guess here's where we part ways —

"We —

"Bye," Chikusa's voice overpowered Ken's.

Tsuna gulped as Ken's face turned red.

"KAKI-PI!" Ken suddenly grabbed Chikusa's shoulders, shaking him. "Why do you keep interrupting me?!"

The other guy was very calm despite being rocked back and forth. "Knowing you, you'll probably say something stupid."

Ken roughly removed his grip and pouted. "Who cares! Just let me say what I want!"

"This is so troublesome," Chikusa muttered, looking away. "Go ahead, say what you want to say to Tsuna."

"Good!" Ken turned away from his friend and faced Tsuna.

 _At least they're okay now,_ Tsuna thought, giving Ken a smile. "Yes?"

"W-we —

Ken froze. Then unfroze, then froze again. And then unfroze but this time his face was redder than ever and he turned around while whining about _inappropriate now_ and _I lost my chance thanks to you Kaki-pi you evil monster!_

Chikusa only ushered him away as Ken continued to whine and curse him. "Mukuro-sama would want to see you, Tsuna."

That was an invitation to go to the cafe, Tsuna mused. "I'll pass by sometime."

And so they finally parted ways with Tsuna heaving a big sigh of relief. He glanced at his phone to find it was around seven-forty-five, and the train station was still twenty minutes away on walking a normal pace. That meant Tsuna had to _run_ to make it on time, and run he did.

Then again, things weren't always smooth-sailing like how he wanted it to be.

In his effort to get on time he failed to look at where he's going, his intuition unsuccessful from preventing his collision with somebody else. The other guy quickly clamped his hands on Tsuna's shoulders to stop his fall.

"Thanks, and sorry!" Tsuna kept his head down, clenching his eyes tight.

"What a coincidence, huh Tsuna?" Takeshi's cheery voice made him feel a whole lot better. "This is the second time today."

Tsuna finally pulled his head up to look at him. "Yeah. I'm glad it's you." _And not another distraction._

Takeshi only kept his smile and stared back.

Then Tsuna remembered why they met like this. "I'm sorry again, Takeshi. I was running and wasn't looking, I didn't want to be late to our meeting —

"Haha! I was running too. My dad made me help with the shop for a bit but I was already running late," he smiled wider, and as he removed his hands from Tsuna's shoulders he quickly replaced an arm over it. "But now that we're both here, then we can both be 'late' to our meeting!"

"That's a funny way of looking at it," Tsuna coughed into his hand.

"Come on, let's go to the train station together."

Even though things weren't always smooth-sailing, sometimes it turns out even better.

* * *

Tsuna gulped as he stood nervously on the train platform. "That train's taking its time . . ."

Takeshi laughed. "It's only been a minute from the last train, Tsuna! Relax."

Tsuna laughed too, albeit a little too nervously. "I'm just excited to get to Kishiki."

Takeshi laughed louder this time and gestured to Tsuna's other side. "I think Hibari's worried about you."

Needless to say, Kyouya was standing next to Tsuna, but his eyes were focused on the space in front of him. He had his arms crossed and Tsuna could clearly see the man was itching to get his tonfas out and probably attack Takeshi for describing him with something so _unlike_ him. Tsuna wondered what was stopping him, when the man suddenly brandished his favorite weapons and dashed towards Takeshi —

But Takeshi was just as fast as he blocked the tonfa using his baseball bat.

Tsuna's panic levels were rising. "K-Kyouya! Please stop attacking —

"Carnivores are natural predators," Kyouya grumbled without even glancing at Tsuna, keeping his eyes trained on Takeshi.

The other guy only smiled back. "I'm not a carnivore though."

Tsuna glanced between the two of them. "Come on, no fighting please? Ah, the train's here —

Kyouya's eyes narrowed even further. "I absolutely despise _liars_." But he concealed his tonfas again and finally acknowledged Tsuna's presence. "Little animal, you _will_ return to Namimori."

Tsuna was confused. "O-of course?"

Kyouya's focus returned to Takeshi. " _Untouched_."

But Takeshi only held up his smile as he placed both of his hands at the back of his head.

Tsuna was absolutely confused and it seemed like the two were communicating somehow, with the way they were staring at each other as the train made its stop at Namimori station. Kyouya didn't cause any more altercation as Tsuna and Takeshi boarded the train. When the train departed, Tsuna turned to the other guy. "What were you and Kyouya talking about?"

"Aah, he's just worried. You've never been very far from Namimori, right?"

Tsuna nodded. "The farthest I got was Kokuyo, but that's only a few minutes away with a bike. Simon's the same . . . Unless you count my deliveries to Kawamoku, but I don't stay there too long."

"He's probably worried something will happen to you when you're not in his area of influence. Who knew Hibari was so _territorial_?" Takeshi laughed at his own joke as everybody knew Kyouya was absolutely and undeniably territorial.

Tsuna smiled in response, but something nagged him at the back of his mind, only he couldn't figure out what it was.

* * *

Kishiki was a homely-looking town, which was quite a contradiction to how Tsuna imagined it to be; when the concept of universities came to his mind, all he could imagine was tall, towering buildings and lots of people. Kishiki, and by extension, Kishiki University, looked oddly similar to Namimori, only it had a university in the middle of it.

"There are more people during weekdays," Takeshi blurted out as if he had read what was on Tsuna's mind. "Do you want to take a look around or do you want to head to Admissions?"

"Admissions sounds good. Then we could walk around afterwards."

This was a rather serious trip, Tsuna pondered when they finally acquired the list of available programs offered in Kishiki U. His mom's chanting of "It's a date! It's a date!" suddenly lost its merit and Tsuna could finally admit he was relaxed. He had been far too high-strung for the past few hours.

"This university's too big," Tsuna grumbled while they took a break at the school's field bleachers. "Just look at the size of this field!"

"Well, baseball fields are generally huge," Takeshi chuckled, handing Tsuna a can of green tea.

Tsuna frowned. "But in Namimori Middle, the field isn't this big but you can still play baseball."

"That's just the infield, which is where most of the action happens like the pitching and the batting. The outfield is the one taking up the space. You know? The grassy area outside the diamond area?"

Tsuna pouted. "I know this was taught during our P.E. class but for some reason I don't remember it. Aah, I suck at sports . . ."

"If you're good at sports you'll be far too perfect," Takeshi grinned.

Tsuna accidentally spat out his green tea.

"Tsuna-kun?" There was a familiar voice that called out to them, who Tsuna knew too well. He turned around in an instant to find Kyoko climbing up the stairs towards them, gracing them with her goddess smile. "It is _you_ , Tsuna-kun! And Yamamoto-kun too!"

"Kyoko-chan!" Tsuna stood up to welcome her and she quickly gave him a warm, comforting hug. "Do you have classes today?"

Kyoko pulled away from him and pouted a tiny bit. "Why didn't you tell me you're coming to Kishiki? We only talked last night. I was just about to go back to my dorm when I spotted you here. What are the odds?"

"Yeah, but it's a happy coincidence! Right, Takeshi?" Tsuna turned to the other guy who was already standing up.

"Yup."

Kyoko smiled again. "So, why didn't you tell me? I would've met you at the station!"

Tsuna looked sheepish. "I didn't want to bother you . . . and besides, I already have Takeshi as my tour guide."

"Oh, Tsuna-kun . . . you will never bother me. Next time, please let me know if you're coming here so I can accompany you. Especially when Yamamoto-kun might be too busy to accomodate you." She smiled at Takeshi who smiled in return. "Oh! Let me tell Onii-chan I found you here!"

"Kyoko-chan, I don't want to keep you if you have something else to do."

"I don't have any classes today so it's alright. I can spend the rest of the day with you two!"

And that made Tsuna calm down by a huge margin, for who knows the reason why. All he knew was Kyoko always made his day better and now he would get to spend this day with her, after not seeing her in person for so long (sending each other pictures through Line didn't compare).

* * *

Next thing Tsuna knew, it was almost four in the afternoon and Kyoko had already left on her merry way. Takeshi and him were already riding the train back to Namimori while Tsuna held his stomach in comfort. "I ate too much," he grumbled, regretting the copious amounts of food Kyoko had placed on his plate. "The food in your cafeteria is too good . . ."

"Culinary Arts majors intern there, so maybe that explains why."

"Please let me rest for a while," Tsuna mumbled as he leant against Takeshi's shoulder. "I'm sorry we didn't get to visit your dorm, but I hope you still had fun."

Tsuna felt the vibrations of Takeshi's body, presumably from chuckling lightly. "I should be the one saying that to you. Technically, you're my guest and not the other way around."

"But I was the one who brought up the idea to go to Kishiki in the first place."

"And I accepted. Which means it's my responsibility."

"B-but if I didn't bring it up then you didn't have to take any responsibility at all —

"Tsuna."

Tsuna reluctantly looked up sideways to stare at Takeshi's face.

"I hope you had fun," Takeshi smiled.

Tsuna was dead. Dead, resurrected, dying and then dead again. At least, that was what he felt at this very moment with all the blood rushing to his face and to his head and then suddenly the space felt lighter and way, way, hotter and —

"It's so annoying watching you two!" Tsuna swore he heard Lambo's voice from somewhere but when he looked around he didn't find him. Maybe it was only his imagination because he was feeling a little too light-headed right now, maybe he was starting to hallucinate things.

"Please wake me up when we get to Namimori," Tsuna whispered before drifting into a nap.

* * *

As soon as they got off the train at Namimori Station, Kyouya chased Takeshi away with his tonfas and dangerous aura permeating around him. The two then disappeared into the distance before Tsuna could even say anything else, watching in confusion.

Kusakabe was standing next to him. "Kyou-san cancelled all his patrols today."

Tsuna didn't want to hear it.

"Kyou-san kept watch on Namimori Station all day."

Tsuna seriously didn't want to know.

"Kyou-san waited right here."

" _Please_ Kusakabe-san," Tsuna pleaded, every inch of his body wanting him to cry out tears of disbelief at the craziness of everything. "I just want to go home and rest from my trip."

"Of course, Sawada," Kusakabe bowed and stepped aside, which Tsuna took as his cue to run away as fast as he could.

* * *

"How was your date, Tsu-kun?"

"There was no _date_ , mom."

"Oh?"

"We did go to Kishiki, but like I told you it wasn't a _date_."

"Will you tell me all about it?"

"It's really nothing special. I got the university's program listings, we met Kyoko-chan halfway through —

"Oh?"

" — and she stayed with us until the end of our trip. Why do you look so shocked?"

"I guess I just never factored in Kyoko-chan. That's something new."

"What the heck are you talking about, mom?!"

"Oh~ nothing. Take your well-deserved rest, Tsu-kun. There's still plenty of time to enter the realm of adulthood!"

"I don't want to hear that from you!"


	30. Mistake

_uploaded on January 5, 2016_

Happy New Year everyone. Thank you so much for the continued support for the story. I'm so very thankful for all the wonderful things you've given me, whether it's a fave or a follow or a review or even by just reading this. It means you're interested and hopefully enjoying it. It means a lot to me! Let's continue to have fun with Tsuna's demise.

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Mistake**

* * *

"Ah, Tsuna-kun!" Uncle Kawahira greeted Tsuna as soon as he stepped inside the shop.

"Good morning, Uncle Kawahira," Tsuna smiled, placing his bag on one of the spare tables. "I'm ready for my delivery!"

As if it was the trigger to the sudden change, Uncle Kawahira's almost permanent smile turned into a slight frown, sending shivers down Tsuna's spine. If Tsuna found it scary to see Uncle Kawahira _always_ smiling, seeing the man without his smile was even more terrifying. "Regarding that . . . I hope you forgive me for not telling you sooner, Tsuna-kun."

Tsuna's eyes widened in surprise and confusion. "Did something happen?"

"In a way," Uncle Kawahira gestured to the service area, which Tsuna understood as the man urging him to sit down. It was going to be a long talk, apparently. "Remember what happened last week?" The man continued when Tsuna was comfortably sitting on a spare chair.

Tsuna nodded. "I got sick so I wasn't able to do the delivery. My mom informed you about it, I recall . . . " Tsuna also didn't forget about how he was so desperate to go to work just to avoid having _Reborn_ deliver the damn cake to the Varia.

"Yes, and your mom was very adamant I don't make you work. I wasn't even considering it," Uncle Kawahira chuckled, making Tsuna blush. His mom was so embarrassing sometimes!

And then Uncle Kawahira looked too grim again. "That's where _this_ situation comes in."

Tsuna gulped. "Is it serious?"

"Rather than serious, I would say the better term is significant." Uncle Kawahira smiled. "We have a new employee."

"Oh."

The older man furrowed his eyebrows. "Are you disappointed, Tsuna-kun?"

"W-why would I be disappointed?"

"It's very likely we have a new person staying in the shop with you and Reborn."

Tsuna began to shake nervously as he clutched the hem of his shirt. "A-a-and why would that be disappointing? Hahaha!"

Uncle Kawahira didn't answer his question and only watched him with a grave look on his face. For some reason, that made Tsuna nervous even more.

Before he could ask again what the man meant with feeling disappointment, the shop door burst open, followed by a loud set of footsteps.

" _Ojii-san,_ where's the cake?"

Tsuna recognized that voice from somewhere. When he turned his head to look at the newcomer, he was surprised to find that guy he met on a park bench a few weeks ago. "Skull-sama!"

Skull-sama gave him a lazy once-over before smirking. "It's the commoner," he smugly announced, smirking even wider. "I am very glad you remembered my name and the _only_ rightful way to call me — that is to be expected of course — who could ever ignore me and my awesomeness?"

Uncle Kawahira looked surprised. "Oh, you already know each other?"

"We've met, kind of," Tsuna replied sheepishly, refusing to share the exact circumstances on how they met in the first place which involved a certain man with sparkling blond hair and sunset-orange eyes and — _brain, stop_ —

But wait, what was Skull-sama doing here?

"Ah, then this saved me a ton," Uncle Kawahira smiled, gesturing to Skull-sama. "Skull is our new delivery guy!"

Tsuna's jaw almost dropped on the floor.

"I have an impressive array of transportation at my disposal so delivery of goods won't be hard," the new delivery guy explained while looking even more smug than ever. "My vehicles are faster than the _Shinkansen —_

"What could be faster than a bullet train?!"

" — and I can deliver to other parts of the world in a heartbeat!"

"I don't think that's necessary!"

Uncle Kawahira set out a box on the counter and laughed. "In any case, all delivery tasks are now assigned to Skull. So, Tsuna-kun, you don't have to worry about it anymore. You can now properly take your regular day offs during Sundays."

Surprisingly, Tsuna hadn't even thought about his day off on Sundays. He was worried about the safety and survivability rate of the person in-charge of delivering cakes to the Varia because he knew how much of a chaos it was. He could handle it fine, thanks to his strange gut feeling, but a normal person? Close to zero percent probability! But he had to admit Skull-sama didn't seem to be a _normal_ person; he had that certain aura emanating from him, similar to Reborn's though a bit more mellow and passive. Tsuna couldn't explain why he could _feel_ it or what it was in the first place, though. Well anyway, maybe Skull-sama would be fine.

"Welcome to Kawahira's Baked Goodies. Let's work together from now on," Tsuna did his best to be polite by bowing, properly acknowledging Skull-sama as his new co-worker.

"Yes, let's, but I'll be here only when really, really needed. I refuse to stay in once place for long periods of time!" Skull-sama scoffed as if it was to be expected of someone his caliber.

"I'm sure we'll work something out." Uncle Kawahira gestured to the box. "Here's the cake delivery for today, Skull. Varia CEO."

Skull-sama picked up the box. "On it." He swiftly looked back at Tsuna again who jumped up a little bit at the sudden action. "You better have something prepared for me the next time I see you, commoner. Something worthy for Skull-sama!"

Tsuna winced. "I'll try . . . ?"

"Very good!"

Then Skull-sama left.

Tsuna stared at the empty space where Skull-sama used to stand in. So . . . the new employee was Skull-sama as the delivery guy. But from what he said, he didn't want to stay too long in the shop, so that probably meant he would only be here during the times he needed to deliver something. Which was on a Sunday. Right?

Tsuna didn't know why he felt relieved.

"Everything turned out for the better, hmm, Tsuna-kun?" Uncle Kawahira was smiling that _scary_ smile again, which was different from his regular smiles even though it all looked the same. It always made Tsuna shiver. "You can go home now. I'm sorry for the trouble."

"A-ah, no, Uncle Kawahira, it's all good," Tsuna mumbled his way out as he clumsily put on his bag again. "It's not like I wanted to go to Xan — the Varia CEO's estate."

"What do you mean?"

Tsuna gulped. "Um, I mean, weren't you talking about that?"

"I'm not quite sure I understand, Tsuna-kun."

Tsuna was feeling nervous. "You asked me if I felt disappointed that somebody else is doing the delivery now . . . right?"

Uncle Kawahira didn't reply. He laughed. And laughed some more. Tsuna then took it as his cue to excuse himself and get the heck out of there. He didn't know what was so funny!

* * *

Tsuna was barely a few meters away from the station when a metal meter stick suddenly appeared out of nowhere and under his chin.

"VOOOOOIII! What's the meaning of this, you shitty brat?!"

"W-what — Squalo —

The stick prodded his chin, forcing his head up to face Squalo's tall form looming over him. "We received the message from the Cake God."

 _Cake God?!_ Wasn't that _Xanxus's_ name for Uncle Kawahira when texting _Ten,_ Tsuna's fake persona? Squalo uses it too? Maybe Squalo had read Xanxus's messages to Ten?! But they didn't know it was _Tsuna_ , right? Tsuna wanted to cry. If ever the Varia learned it was _him_ making Xanxus text all those cutesy emojis . . . Tsuna would have to start writing his will.

"You have relinquished your responsibility for bringing the Boss's cake?! _Unacceptable!_ "

"I — _relinquish_ is too much of a heavy word for it! It's just — there's someone who can do the job better than me and —

Squalo wasn't taking any of it, Tsuna realized, when the man loomed even closer, a bit too close to Tsuna's face. "It's not up to you to decide who does a better job, scum."

Tsuna persevered. "The new guy has his own means of transpo —

"I would take you down myself, but the Boss's orders are absolute."

"W-what does that mean?" Tsuna's eyes widened in combined recognition and fear.

Squalo leaned even closer, his mouth almost on Tsuna's ear as he whispered, "It means you better run, little cub."

Tsuna ran.

* * *

Tsuna's phone was firing notifications left and right as he made his way into the more secluded areas of Namimori. The notification sound was from his messaging app, and based on the recent happening Tsuna was pretty sure it was Xanxus mailing _Ten_ his woes. But he couldn't take out his phone until he was sure he was in a safe place; Squalo's foreshadowing only affirmed his worries.

When he successfully made his way inside an abandoned building, and then waited for a few minutes to see if anyone was following him but found no one, Tsuna deemed it as _safe_. He pulled out his phone from his pocket and immediately noticed the countless amounts of messages. All from Xanxus. Most of it only contained various emojis expressing sadness, shock, anger and more sadness, but there were a few that contained an actual message. Tsuna tapped on the first one to read the text.

 _Ten x_ _The Cake Angel had forsaken me._

Tsuna purposely ignored the liberal use of emojis that littered the mail and scrolled to the next one.

 _But I already have a plan laid out. I'm not the type of person that backs away easily._

Tsuna felt a chill ran up his spine, but ignored it just the same and moved on to the next.

 _If I haven't told you before, you should know that I always get what I want._

Tsuna's hands were shaking a tiny bit, but he tried his best to steady them as he scrolled to the next message.

 _The trash who follows me wanted to collect the Cake Angel on their own but I won't have that. It should be me._

Tsuna almost didn't want to scroll down to the next message, but he had to if he had his survival in his best interests.

 _So I had them lock down the area until I get there. I will make the Cake Angel realize this is all a big mistake._

Tsuna bit his lip.

 _He's hiding from me right now._

Tsuna gulped.

 _But don't worry Ten, I found him._

That was Xanxus's last message.

Ever so slowly and surely, Tsuna returned his phone back in his pocket. Assuming Xanxus wasn't just making it up to impress Ten, it only meant the Varia already knew where he was right now. Trust them to zero in on him in an instant; were they really _just_ businessmen? Was it possible they had a tracker on him all this time?

Maybe when Squalo confronted him . . .

Tsuna quickly felt around his body if there were any foreign objects on him, but it didn't matter anyway if Xanxus already knew where he was. So far, he couldn't sense any movement within close proximity, but he shouldn't be too complacent. He had to be ready. Who knew what kind of persuasion Xanxus would do to him? Judging from the times he was with the man, Tsuna thought it was fair to tag the guy as _undeniably violent._

If worst came to worst he could probably dodge attacks from seven people — there _were_ seven of the Varia, right? Xanxus, Squalo, Bel, Fran, Levi, Luss and that person with the hood that Tsuna had never been introduced to before. But what if they brought all of their bodyguards?! Tsuna was doomed. But he would deal with it. Somehow.

For now, what should he do? Should he stay here and wait for the inevitable arrival of Xanxus? Should he just throw himself out in the open, after all they already knew where he was? But that would mean Tsuna _knew_ that they _knew_ and he couldn't have that. Now that he thought about it, shouldn't he reply to the messages —

 _Movement from the right._

Tsuna sidestepped and whipped around to find Xanxus standing there, only a few meters away, looking quite mad and ready to kill. Tsuna thought back to the emoji-filled texts and almost giggled at the contrast but his survival instincts won and he stopped himself on time. He then decided to be civil. "Good morning, Xanxus."

"Take it back," Xanxus growled, and Tsuna swore he saw the man's red eyes flash an even brighter color.

"Take what back?" Tsuna was freaking nervous but he was trying his best to be calm.

Xanxus took a step forward, while Tsuna took a step backward.

"I specifically ordered _you_ to deliver, not some other trash."

"The new guy's more enthusiastic about the job?" Tsuna tried.

"Take it back or I will make you _take it back._ " Xanxus was looking more dangerous now, as his coat billowed behind him even though there was no wind. They were inside an abandoned building in the first place. Tsuna already learned how to ignore minor details such as this.

Tsuna held up his arms in a pathetic attempt of a defense. "I don't even know what I should take back!"

But the man wasn't having any of it. In an instant, he rushed towards Tsuna with so much _intent_ that it caught Tsuna off-guard for a second, which, apparently was enough to distract him and to give the guy an opening. In a matter of seconds Xanxus successfully grabbed his shoulders and pushed him against the dilapidated wall.

"This is surprisingly familiar," Tsuna mumbled offhandedly while staring up at Xanxus's face. He remembered a similar scene happening when he was at the Varia mansion for the first time.

"Take it back," the guy grumbled in a low voice, his hands that were gripping Tsuna's shoulders tightening and . . . shaking?

Tsuna didn't fail to notice the quiver before the guy himself did and he steadied them at the next moment. Was it nervousness? But that would be stupid; Xanxus didn't do _nervous._ It was most probably from helding onto his anger or some other form of self-control. As Tsuna looked up at Xanxus's face, who, surprisingly, had a softer look on his eyes, it didn't quite help his conclusion but he was holding on to it just the same. After all, Xanxus was one scary and brutal savage and _soft_ and _nervous_ and _gentle_ weren't appropriate adjectives for him.

Taking his chances, Tsuna decided to smile at his assailant and to be kind. "At least let me know what I should take back."

But Xanxus didn't say anything and only glared harder at him, and this time Tsuna was sure that the man was growling under his breath.

Was _this_ his so-called _plan_? Tsuna wanted to laugh. So he really didn't have a plan at all and was just showing off! At least he was alone. Tsuna could probably outrun him if the situation called for it —

Tsuna must have actually laughed. Or something, or anything he did to piss Xanxus off because at the next second, the guy leant down and bit his neck.

"Hiiii —

"Always wanted to do that," Xanxus moved away and just as he was about to lean in again, this time he was _surely_ going to bite off Tsuna's face, Tsuna crouched down and made his way out of Xanxus's space by running through under his arms. Tsuna couldn't even begin to care that his neck was hurting real bad; he had to get out of there or he'd get eaten! Figuratively or literally!

Xanxus didn't chase him, though.

Tsuna's heart felt like it was going to leap out of his chest. He could feel all the blood rushing to his head as he ran and ran and ran, his breath running out and his legs beginning to hurt. He wasn't even remotely aware of where he was going until he realized that by pure intuition alone, his body guided him back to his house, which was probably the safest area in all of Namimori right now.

"Tsu-kun, welcome back —

"Sorry mom, I'll talk to you later —

"Ara! Your neck's bleeding!"

"It's just a scratch!"

* * *

Tsuna's nerves were still all over the place as he laid down on his bed while hugging a pillow. It was like _that_ time when Kyouya bit him — and then Xanxus said something like biting him too. That was so long ago that Tsuna couldn't believe that guy was actually serious about it. And then he remembered! And then he did it! Today! At his neck! And stuff! And it still hurt! But it was kind of tingly. But it hurt! And bleeding! And he's probably getting blood on his bed!

If his plan was to bite him then it was the shittiest plan Tsuna ever heard of.

And then he was about to bite off Tsuna's face, or at least that was what Tsuna wanted to believe he was about to do because the _other_ implication was even worse and Tsuna refused to think about why Xanxus was leaning on his face a bit too close as if he wanted to do something else than bite off his face and —

Tsuna rolled off his bed and hid under it.

He was going to die with how much his heart was racing.

His phone pinged a new notification, and Tsuna didn't waste a second to check it. He needed all the distraction he could get.

It was Xanxus. Tsuna almost threw his phone away, but he exerted control. Hey, maybe he wanted to share something to Ten. Valuable "insider" information was always good.

 _Ten, our meeting didn't go as well as I hoped._

So the guy called their hide-and-seek stalking a meeting, huh?

 _I had a plan but I wasn't able to do it._

He had a different plan, after all.

 _I saw his face and I kind of lost control. I guess._

That sentence was followed by an emoji that blurred itself in Tsuna's mind. His built-in filter at work.

 _I still can't believe he's resigning . . . I was even going to ask him to work for me if he really didn't want to be at the cake shop anymore._

Tsuna stared at the screen. For some reason it felt like there was some things that were misunderstood, somewhere along the line and . . .

The Varia thought he _resigned_ from Kawahira's Baked Goodies, when in reality he only handed the delivery job to a person hired specifically to do just that, so he could focus on his actual job — a cashier. The reason for their over-the-top reaction was because they thought he resigned.

Tsuna dialed the phone to Xanxus's home office, and judging from the voice of the person who answered it, it was Fran.

"I am still a cashier in Kawahira's Baked Goodies, available Mondays to Fridays, ten AM to seven PM. Good day."

He ended the call without waiting for a response.

* * *

"Tsu-kun, Kawahira-san's on the phone!"

Tsuna climbed down the stairs and answered the phone. "Good afternoon, Uncle Kawahira."

"Good afternoon to you too, Tsuna-kun. I learned my lesson, so I called you immediately about a new development in the shop."

Tsuna wished it didn't expand again. "What is it?"

"The Varia executives are one of our most loyal customers, are they not?"

"Um, yes?"

"They love our cakes so much, that aside from a weekly delivery, they now have a bi-weekly appointment in the shop too. They wanted it to be weekly but alas, they could only squeeze in a bi-weekly appointment in their busy schedule. Still, isn't that great Tsuna-kun?"

Tsuna would die. But most importantly, the whole world would die if the Varia and Reborn ever meet. It was going to be the end of the world.

"Yeah, great . . . "

* * *

"Was it Ken-kun?"

"He's at Tokyo, so no."

"Kyouya-kun?"

"It was him the last time."

"Takeshi-kun?"

"Is he the type to bite other people, mom?"

"Yes."

"See — what?"

"Ah! Byakuran-kun!"

"Don't remind me . . . "

"Mukuro-kun? No, I take it back."

"You don't think Mukuro would do it?"

"No."

"You don't think Mukuro would do it but Takeshi would."

"Yes."

"I don't understand you sometimes . . . "

"Don't tell me it's Xan-kun?"

"Is this a game for you, mom?!"

"I'm right! Ahaha."

"Just don't tell somebody else . . . "

Tsuna was utterly defeated.


	31. Opening

_uploaded on March 15, 2016_

I'm sorry for the long delay. I have various excuses . . . and although I was inactive in FFN, I'm still somewhat active in my tumblr, posting fanarts and comics. My url is: msleilei . tumblr . com

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Opening**

* * *

Tsuna could feel it.

A heavy aura permeated around him, a mixture of dread, irritation and uneasiness. Why wouldn't it, when he could feel a burning sensation piercing through his body — or more specifically, at the back of his neck.

It was starting to get really annoying.

Tsuna turned around and glared at his coworker. "Please stop staring, Reborn."

Reborn's onyx eyes briefly shot up to look at his face, but then returned just as fast to rest at their original spot, staring directly at Tsuna's neck.

Tsuna held his ground. "Please stop it. It's annoying!"

"I'm figuring out the possible reasons why you'd wear a scarf to work," Reborn quipped, using his free hand to gesture at Tsuna's neck. Said neck was sporting a warm, blue scarf, wound a little too tight. Tsuna did his best to maintain his poker face, but he was pretty sure he was a bit close to breaking out a sweat. If Reborn noticed it, he didn't say anything about it.

Obviously, the only surefire way to not give anything away was to refuse thinking about the reason why he was wearing a scarf to work. It had _absolutely_ nothing to do with what happened yesterday. Not. At. All.

To add to that, Tsuna was prepared. He practiced multiple times at home before heading out. "I'm feeling a little cold today," he managed to voice out without even a stutter.

"It's almost summer."

"S-so?" _Dammit._ "What's your point?"

"A good boss can lie perfectly when the situation calls for it."

"But I'm not a boss!"

Reborn raised an eyebrow.

Tsuna flushed. "And I'm not lying!" He turned back around and pouted. That guy could rile him up a bit too easily for his sanity. Nevermind the fact his effort to practice had gone to waste . . .

In the end though, _Reborn_ was a minor subject in the grand scheme of things. This was the conclusion Tsuna came to when he took an affirmative glance around the cake shop.

They had _customers._

Real, people customers! Not a non-customer, not one of those weirdos — ahem, _unique_ — customers that often pass by the shop. These were real, _normal_ and sane customers. Granted there were only four right now, but still . . .

Tsuna did his best to serve them earlier. They ordered a variety of cakes and decided to dine right then and there. They also ordered some coffee drinks — which Reborn didn't force Tsuna to make, thank goodness — and now they were chatting happily together as they munched on their sweets. Apparently they were a group of friends.

Also, apparently, Reborn hadn't lost his charm. Tsuna could still distinctly remember the only time Reborn accompanied him during lunch; it was when they ate at the plaza. A lot of girls had admired and stared at the guy and the guy was perfectly aware of it. Maybe even relished it as he gave them a subtle nod complete with a smirk. Tsuna, on the other hand, was thankful he never got the same amount of attention from random people. He just wanted to live a peaceful life.

This time the group of friends were doing the same, with them glancing back and forth at the counter. Tsuna shrugged. Reborn was attractive after all. If you were after the dangerous, mysterious type of guy, that is.

But one of them (mistakenly?) landed her eyes on Tsuna, and Tsuna unfortunately caught it. To break the awkwardness, what was the best thing to do?

Smile, of course!

So Tsuna smiled.

The rest of her friends had to pull her plate away when her head landed on the table, unconscious.

Tsuna pleaded to Uncle Kawahira for help since Reborn was being a jerk again and disappeared off to somewhere.

* * *

The girl was okay. At least she seemed like it when she gained consciousness after a few minutes of laying down in the staff room couch. Tsuna tried to offer accompanying her to the nearest clinic (which was, consequently, just next door), but the girl and her friends denied his offer and said they didn't need it.

What they needed though was his picture, apparently.

While still in the staff room, they posed around him and took several pictures. _Poor girls,_ Tsuna thought, _they had to settle with me because Reborn vanished._

Then they went back to the main area and continued eating their cakes.

"Everything alright?" Uncle Kawahira welcomed Tsuna back to his counter.

"She said she was just dizzy," Tsuna shrugged and took his place back at the register. "And they said they only need to eat more cake to regain their energy . . . or something like that."

Uncle Kawahira nodded. "Interesting."

"What is?"

But Uncle Kawahira only waved him off. "I need to make some adjustments," he mumbled as he returned to the kitchen.

Tsuna gulped. He always felt an enormous amount of dread whenever Uncle Kawahira was being cryptic; ironically nothing had stemmed from his mysteriousness _yet_ , but the dread appeared just the same. One couldn't be too careful, Tsuna justified in his head.

* * *

When the group of customers finished their cakes and left, Reborn still hasn't returned. When a new pair of customers showed up, Reborn _still_ hasn't returned. It was a good thing they only ordered tea which was something Tsuna was rather proficient in making, or else he'd have to lie again that the coffee machine wasn't working. Where the heck was Reborn anyway? He always disappeared at the most inconvenient times.

That was when Enma appeared at the front door.

Tsuna rushed over to him. "Enma!"

"Tsuna — "

Enma froze.

Tsuna's eyebrows furrowed. "What's wrong?"

"Y-your arms . . ." Enma mumbled, his cheeks sporting a bright shade of red.

Tsuna glanced down at his arms, which were held up in front of him as if he was about to hug Enma. He quickly brought them down to his sides. He honestly didn't realize, he thought glumly as his face tinged pink.

Enma finally let out a smile. "Good afternoon, Tsuna."

For some reason, that made Tsuna feel even more embarrassed as he felt his face getting warmer. "G-good afternoon, Enma. You don't have school today?"

Enma coughed into his fist. "Kind of."

Tsuna's eyebrows furrowed again. He knew _exactly_ what that meant — he had several years of experience. If the cuts on Enma's face were new, then . . .

"I just wanted to —

"Okay!" Tsuna nodded. "Let's go to my room."

There were gasps in the background. Enma froze for the second time.

 _Goddamit._ "I meant the staff room!" Tsuna whined, hiding his face in his hand.

Then a sudden realization made his blood run cold.

 _Background._

His mistake with his choice of words was something embarrassing, but it wasn't too far out from his usual _dame-ness_. He wasn't bothered by that. All was well, except for one detail.

 _Background._

When Tsuna looked up a little to take a peek at the customers seated by the door, he found them watching his scene with Enma with a little too much interest. One had her hands clasped on her mouth. Tsuna was pretty sure her friend's eyes were twinkling.

He hid his eyes again. Somebody, whoever it may be, would witness all these craziness from now on, whatever it may be. And he was just celebrating the fact they had normal customers!

That was also when Tsuna realized everything had a pro and a con. It wouldn't be a surprise if one's actions and decisions would be influenced by these factors. So even if he knew these things and even though this situation's "con" was something that Tsuna never enjoyed experiencing, he knew it would be worth it if the cake shop's customer base grew anyway. Much like Reborn, this setback was a minor subject in the grand scheme of things.

He could do it. He should do it. He would tolerate it all. When he could already resist the weirdness and craziness of this shop's _unique_ customers, what's a few moments in a day where normal people would see him getting harassed — err, disturbed?

It would be a walk in the park. Right?

"Customers are not allowed in the staff room."

 _What perfect timing for Reborn to show up,_ Tsuna thought in disdain. He pulled his head up to glare at the guy who was standing a little bit behind him as expected, like all the other times he showed up suddenly. Enma unfroze and was shifting his eyes back and forth between Reborn and him.

"I-I'm fine, Tsuna," Enma gulped, settling his eyes back on Tsuna.

Tsuna frowned. "You're hurt."

Enma chuckled awkwardly. "That's my secret; I'm always hurt."

If there was another thing Tsuna knew from experience, it was that guys like him and Enma had very good reflexes and reaction time. Without waiting any second, he grabbed Enma's shoulders before the guy could even think of running away. "We're still going to the staff room."

Tsuna could feel Reborn's menacing aura from behind him. "Are you not listening, _dame_ -Tsuna? Customers —

"Are not allowed in the staff room, yes, but there's always an exception." Tsuna turned around and shoved Enma between himself and Reborn. "Just look at this guy!"

Reborn raised an eyebrow. "I see nothing wrong."

"S-see, Tsuna? I'm fine —

"His face is bleeding!"

"That's how he always looks," Reborn deadpanned. Tsuna wanted to scream. It didn't help that Tsuna could hear camera sounds going off; apparently the customers found this situation interesting enough to take pictures. Or maybe they were taking pictures of Reborn. Either way, it was making the situation worse and much more embarrassing.

Tsuna was having none of this. "If you're going to be a jerk, at least be a considerate jerk and watch over the shop. I'm taking Enma to the clinic next door."

"But you're clocked in. Don't leave the shop."

"Like you're one to talk when you suddenly disappeared just minutes ago."

"T-Tsuna," Enma tugged on his apron and giving him the most desperate look Tsuna had ever seen him give, melting some of his anger away. "I am okay. I didn't come here to get treated . . . or whatever the reason you're thinking of . . . "

Tsuna was surprised. His anger towards Reborn disappeared and was replaced with confusion. He had thought Enma escaped from his bullies and was hiding in the cake shop. That was the only logical conclusion to come to when this guy looked like he was beat up very, very recently. So Enma figured out what he was thinking and declared it as wrong?

"Then why?" Tsuna had to ask.

Enma bowed his head. "I just . . ."

Tsuna leaned closer. "Just?"

Enma sighed, and Tsuna could perfectly see his blushing face, "I just wanted to see you . . . "

Tsuna was going to die with all the blood rushing to his head.

"Why do you do this to me, Enma?" Tsuna mumbled in his hand while hiding his face.

"B-but I just answered your question."

 _And that was a really dangerous answer!_

"Oi, are you two done?"

Tsuna's heart stopped. He forgot there were other people in the shop . . . Reborn . . . and the customers . . .

He brought this upon himself.

"Please excuse me," he mumbled before rushing to the staff room to cry.

* * *

"That guy already left," Reborn's voice couldn't sound more uninterested and bored as he stood at the doorway.

Tsuna continued to sit at and face the corner. "Yeah, thanks."

"How long are you planning to mope around?"

"I'm not moping!" Tsuna whined as he clutched his head between his hands. "It's just — Enma made me so nervous it felt like my head was going to explode." Truth be told, it was very similar to what he felt when he saw that seriously good-looking guy with blond hair. It sent all sorts of weird feelings throughout his body that he couldn't even think straight!

"But your head didn't explode." Reborn whispered from behind.

"Hiieeee!" Tsuna quickly pressed himself against the corner as he scampered to turn around. "W-when did you even get close?!"

Reborn was crouched down to his level, his arms crossed and resting on his knees. "The customers left too. Get out there and actually work. A good boss shouldn't be so pathetic."

"I'm not a boss," Tsuna grumbled, but he stood up anyway just to get away from this guy.

Before he could even move a step though, said guy was already blocking off his path with one of his arms pressed against the wall.

Tsuna laughed nervously. "I didn't know you did _kabe-don_ , Reborn." He thought it was just a Xanxus-thing to do.

"I find it odd," Reborn started, completely ignoring Tsuna's remark as he leaned in a little bit closer, much to Tsuna's dismay, "That you claim to be cold, but you don't notice it when your scarf is taken from you."

Tsuna blanched. His eyes zeroed on Reborn's other hand, which was clutching his warm, blue scarf. He forgot he was even wearing one in the first place.

"I-i-it's not cold anymore?" Tsuna tried, looking desperately everywhere aside from Reborn's face.

Then the guy grabbed his jaw and shifted his head to the side.

"O-oi —

"Poor attempt," Reborn muttered as he let go of his jaw. Before Tsuna could say anything, his scarf hit him on the face. "Get back to your register."

Tsuna pouted as he put on his scarf neatly and firmly. He refused to admit _that_ made his chest pound harder than what Enma did to him.

* * *

He couldn't look at Reborn's face after that. Which was all fine and well, it wasn't like it was necessary for him to do his job properly.

And besides . . . he had more pressing matters to attend to, apparently.

"W-welcome," Tsuna greeted their latest customer, albeit not a new one, but still unwanted — ahem, _unexpected_ — for this time of the day. "See anything you like?"

"Oh yes," Mukuro chuckled as he kept his eyes trained on Tsuna. And Tsuna alone.

He should have expected that answer. _Damn._

"Is there a reason for Cafe Illusione's owner to come to our humble shop?" Reborn suddenly interfered, forcing himself between Tsuna and the register.

Tsuna glanced between the two older men. Right, they hadn't met each other before, but somehow Reborn knew who Mukuro was. Tsuna should _really_ restrain his surprise; it wasn't new that Reborn knew about _everything_.

Mukuro wasn't surprised too, or if he was, it didn't show. "I would like to purchase some cake, Mr. Barista," Mukuro quipped.

"Y-yes!" Tsuna piped up, looking straight at Reborn. "Mukuro's a regular customer . . . "

He cut himself off when Reborn's black irises focused on him at the corners of his eyes. That was when Tsuna remembered that yes, he was still feeling anxious with their little scene in the staff room just minutes ago. He was being too full of himself! He quickly averted his own brown eyes and looked at Mukuro instead as he tried his best to stop himself from shaking.

"Ahh, to be specific, Cafe Illusione staff are regular customers," Tsuna continued as if he didn't interrupt himself.

"Correct," Mukuro grinned, leaning on the counter. "I would also like one Americano, Mr. Barista."

Tsuna took a peek at Reborn, who didn't say anything and just walked off to the coffee machines.

"You look troubled," Mukuro's voice got Tsuna's attention that he almost snapped his neck to look at him in an instant.

"I-I'm fine. Maybe a little stressed." Tsuna couldn't help but think Mukuro was actually tolerable today. "Anyway, which cake are you having today?"

"My dear sister requested the Fiery Storm cake, so we will have that."

As Tsuna prepared the cake, Mukuro was uncharacteristically silent. Even Reborn, who normally insults people he didn't like, only left the cup of coffee at the counter before excusing himself for a quick break.

"I believe you're a hardworker, Tsunayoshi-kun," Mukuro announced out of the blue, surprising Tsuna that he almost squished the box of cake by accident.

"W-w-what?!"

"That is why, to relieve you from stress, I would like to ask your company on Saturday —

"No."

Reborn had popped his head at the front door just to say that word. And then exited again.

Tsuna was _livid_. Of course it was obvious that Mukuro was asking him out on a _d-date_ and he was going to respectfully decline. But Reborn _had_ to interfere and say _no_ himself and Tsuna didn't enjoy somebody else deciding for him without his consent and it seriously pissed him off.

"Yes," Tsuna grumbled as he tied up the box. "I'm free on Saturday."

"Wonderful," Mukuro smiled and took out his phone. "I believe Mama would love to know about it."

Tsuna stared at him in disbelief. " _Mama_? As in . . . my mom?"

Mukuro was busy typing on his phone. "Yes." He sounded a bit too happy for his usual demeanor. But more importantly . . .

"Why do you have my mom's mail address?!"

"We exchanged contacts the last time I was at your house," Mukuro explained non-chalantly as if it was normal to know his mom's number when _he_ himself didn't even know Mukuro's number. "Mama is a fantastic woman. You are very fortunate to have her in your life."

Tsuna felt like throwing up. "Please don't talk about my mom like that . . . " Tsuna knew Mukuro _probably_ had good intentions but his choice of words were very creepy.

"I will go to your house on Saturday afternoon. Maybe then you will finally lend your body to me."

Tsuna was filled with regret as Mukuro exited the shop with his orders.

Then there were sounds of gunshots, explosions and clinking metals coming from the outside.

 _Just a normal day,_ Tsuna thought as he tuned out the rather familiar sounds. To be honest he was more concerned with the fact that his mom was exchanging numbers with these people. Who knew what kinds of things has she been telling them?!

And the ability to send pictures . . . it was making Tsuna's stomach hurt.

 _Speak of the devil,_ Tsuna sighed as his phone notified him of a new message.

 _Mukuro-kun progression. Mama approves! (*・∀-)_

Tsuna shook his head at his mom's weird antics. He read on.

 _Oh but on Saturday morning, we're hosting a housewarming party for our new neighbors! Just a reminder, Tsu-kun!_ _(-ω・)_

Tsuna didn't even know they had new neighbors. Oh right, there was that one time when he was sick and he overheard his mom talking to this Asari person.

 _Crash!_

"Sorry, Tsuna-nii!" He heard Lambo's voice from outside before another explosion going off.

 _Ah, so they're playing a game,_ Tsuna concluded, _that has fake weapons and grenades and other dangerous but totally fake things._ It was the most logical conclusion.

Tsuna did his best not to cry again.

* * *

"Remind me why you're following me home again," Tsuna glanced at Reborn who was walking a bit behind him.

"I go where I want to go."

"And it happens to be in the same location as my house?"

"I'm not denying nor confirming the possibility."

But it wasn't, Tsuna realized, when Reborn suddenly turned around and walked away as soon as they reached the street where Tsuna's house was in.

Tsuna scratched his head and sighed. Reborn was an enigma. He probably was looking for a fight, Tsuna mused, when he heard gunshots and clinking metals again. At least the stalkers would be a little busy tonight rather than stalking him. For instance, he was pretty sure Bel fell off that tree because a bullet broke the branch. Or how he saw Lancia get flung into the air with that strange metal ball. Ahh, even Ryohei joined the fun when he heard a series of shouts about "Extreme!" and its synoynms.

 _Just like any normal day,_ Tsuna chanted in his head.

* * *

"Nee Tsu-kun."

"Yes, mom."

"Have you ever thought about choosing one —

"Mom."

"Yes, Tsu-kun."

"Please stop with your nonsense."

"Teehee, you're right! It's more fun to have lots of options!"

"That's not what I meant!"


	32. Bug

_uploaded on April 16, 2016_

I want to give everyone a chance to prove themselves. lol

Please enjoy!

* * *

 **Bug**

* * *

The day started with a bang.

Literally.

"Hiiiii —

"Good morning, Tsunayoshi!" Shouichi yelled as he came through the cake shop entrance after slamming the door open.

"Shouichi," Tsuna took a quick glance at the wall clock, which showed a very clear ten-thirteen in the morning, "Good morning. Please don't shout."

"What?"

Tsuna gestured at his ears while staring at Shouichi's face. The guy must have caught his meaning because he instantly brought his hands up to his head and took off his headphones, face red in panic.

"S-sorry," Shouichi bowed his head as he closed the door with a quiet _click_. "I didn't realize I still have them on."

Tsuna giggled a bit. It was always funny seeing Shouichi flustered for some reason. "Good morning, Shouichi. Isn't it a bit too early?"

"O-oh, right! We have a lot of work scheduled for our project today so I thought I'd get around to doing it while waiting for Spanner."

"No classes?"

"No classes."

Tsuna nodded before Shouichi headed to their usual table at the far end of the shop and took out his laptop from his backpack. He seemed to have brought an extra amount of things today too, with how his backpack was bigger than usual. To be honest, Tsuna had no idea what their project was or what it was about . . . now that he thought about it, he didn't even know which degrees they were taking or the university they were going to! And they'd been faithfully coming to the shop every Tuesdays and Fridays for several weeks now! Tsuna felt a little guilty.

"By the way," Shouichi called for his attention while he turned on his laptop, "Where's the barista?"

 _Reborn._ "He's on an errand," at least that was what Uncle Kawahira told Tsuna. "I'm going to be your sole company for today I'm afraid. At least until Spanner shows up."

"I actually like that," the guy mumbled as he stared at his screen.

Tsuna stared at Shouichi.

Shouichi probably felt it, because he raised his head up to look back at him. "What's the matter?"

Tsuna turned around to break eye contact. "N-nothing. Please continue with your work." Thankfully the guy didn't press on because in a few seconds he heard the telltale sounds of typing.

Tsuna sighed. Shouichi was the type of person that gets flustered over the littlest things, so it was a weird experience to hear him say something so straightforward without a hint of nervousness. Well, when Tsuna was being honest, the guy didn't _really_ say it out loud . . . he was mumbling, so maybe, he himself didn't realize he said it out loud. Something like that? He was not aware he was doing it. It was subconscious?

If that was true then Tsuna was the one nervous now!

In the end, Tsuna concluded it was a stupid thing to be nervous over a hypothetical scenario, so he decided to wipe tables to distract himself from his own thoughts.

A few minutes of quiet passed, with the occassional typing sound, when Shouichi spoke up again. "You know, Tsunayoshi. I've been thinking about something."

"Mmm?" Tsuna was in the middle of his chore a few tables away.

Shouichi was typing and talking at the same time. "Thinking," _clack,_ "About," _clack-clack,_ "You?"

"What?!" Tsuna almost knocked a chair over as he placed a hand over his chest. It felt like he was going to have a heart attack.

But the guy was unphased. _He's distracted_ , Tsuna's mind supplied for him to explain the unusual behavior from this guy. _That's it!_ He was distracted and busy and he was focused on doing their project. Yes. He really didn't mean anything with what he said. Nope.

"I was thinking," Shouichi continued without taking his eyes off from his laptop, "I was really thinking about you a lot recently."

 _He repeated it!_ Tsuna cried on the inside. "I-I'm sure it's nothing, haha," Tsuna laughed nervously as he fixed back into place the chair he almost knocked over. "You're here twice a week so it's not unusual you'd think about someone you see on a regular basis."

"That's true."

And that's the end of that.

"But sometimes I remember you with the most obscure things," Shouichi continued while Tsuna despaired. "Just the other day while shopping for new headphones I saw this really cute set, but I know red doesn't suit me. 'Ah, but I bet it would look great on Tsunayoshi,' I thought. The design was cool, it's definitely suited for a cool person too. Then I imagined you wearing it and having that smile on your face . . ."

At this point Tsuna had already sat down on that chair he almost knocked over because he didn't think he'd be able to stand up any longer with all the shaking he's doing. Shouichi was still talking about his train of thought while doing his headphone shopping and Tsuna _had_ to tune it out or else he'd be a puddle of goo. A dead puddle of goo.

He couldn't even begin to imagine Shouichi saying these things . . . apparently the guy transforms to a monster when placed in front of his laptop.

When Tsuna calmed down and when he was sure Shouichi was done narrating detailed imagery of how _cute_ he'd look with the headphones on — _calm down Tsuna_ — he looked back at the guy to find him holding up a pair of red headphones. "This one's for you, Tsunayoshi," Shouichi smiled.

Tsuna promptly turned into a very dead puddle of goo. "I — I can't accept that!" he panicked as fought down his blush. "It looks expensive and there's no occassion for me to be accepting gifts —

"Do you really need a reason?" Shouichi lost his smile.

Tsuna wasn't sure how to respond. He _had_ accepted items before out of nowhere, like those flowers from Dino and flowers from _not_ Dino which were delivered to his house by a flower girl, or that ring from Basil, or that wig from that strange girl, or those contact lenses from Spanner —

Tsuna gulped. He remembered he had a gift from Shouichi back then too. His lion plushie phone charm nicknamed _Natsu._

Right.

"I guess not," Tsuna conceded.

Shouichi smiled again. "In any case, please accept this gift from me. I do have a reason for it though, if you're wondering."

"Oh?"

Shouichi grinned. "Thank you for existing."

Tsuna died. RIP in peace.

But only for a few moments when he abruptly stood from his mispositioned chair, stalked over to Shouichi's table and snatched the headphones away.

"Tsuna — ?"

Tsuna already gave up trying to stop his face from turning red. Instead he decided to thank Shouichi for the gift by _very carefully_ putting the headphones on. "I-is this how you imagined it?" he mumbled, eyes looking away because he was a little afraid to know how Shouichi looked like right now.

He heard a warm set of chuckles from the guy. "Almost. You were smiling then. But I guess pouting works too."

 _Riposi in pace._

Tsuna decided he would never, ever talk to Shouichi again while he was working on his laptop.

* * *

Tsuna woke up.

Wait a minute . . . he was in the middle of his shift. When he opened his eyes he realized he was lying on the staff room couch. And when he sat up, he realized _Spanner_ was on the other end.

"G-good morning, Spanner?" Tsuna tried.

"Good _afternoon_ , cielo," the guy replied.

There were a lot of things wrong with this situation. Why was he sleeping? He didn't remember going to the staff room to sleep, and it wasn't normal behavior for him to do it in the first place. Why was Spanner in the staff room? If Reborn was here, the guy would certainly throw a fit. What's going on in the shop? What time was it?!

"It's two in the afternoon," Spanner answered his unasked question.

"What are you doing here, Spanner?" Tsuna muttered. He might as well be straightforward with it.

Spanner sucked on his lollipop for a few seconds before responding. "That old man asked me to look after you. He's the one manning the register right now."

Tsuna had to wonder what happened. He really couldn't remember . . . his recent recollection of events involved Shouichi —

"W-w-what happened to Shouichi?" Tsuna mumbled while averting his eyes. "You two were supposed to work on your project, right?"

It had been a minute or two, but Spanner still didn't reply that Tsuna was forced to look at him. And when he looked, the guy raised his eyebrows in contemplation. "So . . . Irie began to move."

 _Huh?_

"Shouichi's at the clinic next door," Spanner finally replied. "His stomach was hurting really bad. He said it was just nerves, but if it was, then it was a _really_ bad case of nerves. Must have done something so severe to reach that kind of level."

Tsuna couldn't stop fretting. He should at least visit him for a few minutes and —

"He'll be fine," Spanner cut him off from his thoughts. "Sooner than you'd expect. For the meantime, stay here with me."

Tsuna thought he should believe Spanner. After all, this man was Shouichi's closest friend, or at least it seemed that way, so he must be telling the truth that Shouichi would be fine, right? Even so, he had to go back to work as soon as he could and maybe ask Uncle Kawahira what the heck happened. Decided, he began to stand up. "Thanks for looking after me, Spanner, but I gotta go back."

Spanner had managed to stop him by tugging at his wrist. "Take your lunch first. It's your lunchtime anyway." He pulled up a grocery bag into view. "I got you some food."

Well. Food was always welcome . . . not to mention _free_ food, and he was a little hungry. "Oh . . . okay. You're right, it's about time for me to eat lunch."

Spanner gestured to the space beside him; Tsuna sat back down and waited. Spanner then took out the boxed lunch from the bag, opened it up with care and procured a pair of chopsticks. Tsuna noticed the packed food was the kind that was bought from convenience stores but it didn't really bother him that much. Using the chopsticks, Spanner picked up one of the little octopus sausages and placed it in front of Tsuna's mouth.

Tsuna's eyes widened.

"Open up," Spanner deadpanned.

Tsuna obeyed. The food was promptly shoved inside his mouth. And while he was chewing his food, Spanner got a bite of his own.

 _This actually feels nice,_ Tsuna concluded in a very rational way as he ate his food. The only times he was fed in the past was when he was sick, so he could never really appreciate it. But now he realized that _yeah,_ it _was_ a nice feeling to be fed for no reason at all.

 _Absolutely_ no reason at all and just on a whim. Yep. The feeling of getting pampered and catered to was very nice. It was a little too nice for Tsuna that his body was already moving on instinct as his mouth reached for the food between the chopsticks. He didn't even realize that with every bite he was moving closer and closer —

He was leaning in too close and too far that he lost his balance and landed on Spanner's lap.

"Are you _that_ hungry?" Spanner chuckled over him.

"I guess," Tsuna grumbled and looked away. Of course he wasn't about to admit that it was the feeling of getting pampered that got him!

Spanner leaned back on the couch and sighed. "I have to learn how to cook so I could do this more often."

"You _don't_ have to, and besides, you and Shouichi are only here every Tuesdays and Fridays anyway," Tsuna reasoned out as he used his hands on Spanner's lap to push himself off.

Spanner smirked. "Oh my, cielo, is that an invitation to come more often?"

"N-no! You should only come when you need to! School's more important!" It was just like what he always told Takeshi.

Spanner sighed for the second time. "Right . . . school . . . "

"In any case, let's finish our food?" Tsuna smiled before opening his mouth. "Aah?"

All of a sudden Spanner apparently thought it was a good idea to stab the food with his chopsticks. It was a rare sight to see the guy lose his composure that Tsuna completely lost it himself. "What?" he laughed at Spanner who was suddenly very interested at the other side of the room. "What's up?"

"That combination is _forbidden_ ," Spanner muttered while he covered his face with his now spare hand.

"What combination?" Tsuna was still laughing a little, but he was also very confused.

Spanner grumbled for a bit before responding. "That. What you did. Don't do it again."

What he did — ? _Oh!_ "I'm sorry!" Tsuna bowed his head in shame. "I promise I won't fall on your lap ever again! It was an accident. I'll be more careful."

Spanner finally removed his hand to look at him incredulously. Did he say something wrong? "I wasn't talking about that," Spanner sighed for the third time. "But nevermind. What's done is done . . . let's finish our food."

 _Well, if he's willing to let it go now . . . I should too._ "Okay," Tsuna nodded and smiled. "Aah?"

Spanner shoved the bento box on Tsuna's hands before he walked away and exited the staff room.

Tsuna stared at the door. What did he do?!

* * *

"I think people hate me, Uncle Kawahira," Tsuna lamented to the cake shop owner as he put all his weight on the counter in a rather unsophisticated manner. "Or at least, they like to make fun of me."

"I think you should be more optimistic, Tsuna-kun," the man giggled. "It's a very useful life skill."

Tsuna frowned. He was about to quip something, but remembered he had more pressing matters to attend to. "I'm sorry I suddenly fell asleep, Uncle Kawahira. Can you tell me what happened before that? I remember serving a few customers before sitting down on Reborn's chair . . ."

"Ah, yes!" Uncle Kawahira clapped his hands as he turned to face Tsuna. "I found you in the middle of wiping a fork while sitting on the cushy chair. You were fast asleep. I suppose it's expected since it's a slow day today . . . didn't you have enough sleep last night, Tsuna-kun?"

Tsuna had tried to forget about it but he just knew it would affect him eventually. "Err, last night there were some really noisy things happening in the neighborhood. So I had a difficult time sleeping." And said noisy things definitely didn't involve explosions, clashing metals and random shouts of incoherent taunts.

The man smiled. "You should have told them to quiet down."

Tsuna sighed. "They won't listen to me."

"But have you _tried_ to?"

Tsuna pouted. "No."

Uncle Kawahira gave him a pat on the head. "And there you have it. Try to be more assertive with the things you want, Tsuna-kun."

 _Oh man,_ now he felt ashamed of himself. "Thanks for the advice, Uncle Kawahira. I think I had enough sleep so I'm taking over the register again."

"Very good."

* * *

"Tsuna-nii!"

Lambo's grand entrance never seized to amaze Tsuna.

"Tsuna-nii!" Lambo repeated as he slammed both hands on the counter. "I heard — I heard — !"

Tsuna furrowed his eyebrows. "Heard what?"

Lambo bowed his head, but Tsuna could clearly see the guy's shaking shoulders. Was he crying?! "I heard you didn't get to sleep because of me . . ."

 _Because of_ — "Where did you — ?"

"I heard you say to that old man that you didn't get enough sleep because of the noise," Lambo sniffled as he used his arms to swipe at his face. "I know it's my fault because last night I was playing with Reborn."

 _Playing with what_ — "Playing with Reborn?!"

Lambo nodded. "Yeah. I was trying to hit him with my grenades while he dodged. I always lose . . . "

That was the moment Tsuna's mind stopped thinking logically and was trying its best to maintain his sanity. "But how did you hear me say that? We were alone earlier."

Without saying another word, Lambo reached over one of the jars displayed on the counter, tilted it a bit and pulled something off from the bottom. "This. But it has a very short range so it can only hear what's being said at the counter. I put it earlier when you were sleeping at the chair . . . but I feel guilty so I'm removing it now." He said this as he chucked the object inside his pocket.

Tsuna didn't even want to know how a fourteen-year-old had access to these sort of things so he decided to focus on the important part. "Thank you for telling me this, Lambo. I am sure it's not solely your fault," Tsuna added, since he was positive there were _other_ people involved in that debacle last night, "But I'm glad you're willing to admit it to me. Really glad!" he smiled.

Lambo stared at him. "Do you forgive m-me?"

Tsuna held out his arm and ruffled Lambo's curly hair. "Yeah."

Lambo's face was red when he averted his eyes. "F-for the record, I don't hate you, Tsuna-nii."

"I know."

"I don't like making fun of you."

"I know, I know."

"I will also try my best to listen to you."

"Thank you, Lambo." This guy wasn't kidding when he said he heard his conversation with Uncle Kawahira.

"In fact, because I _don't_ hate you very, very much, I like you a lot!"

"I — " Tsuna began, but really, how was he supposed to respond to that?! "You're a good kid, Lambo." It was all he could say in the end.

Lambo was still red when he nodded confidently and pumped his arms. "Good enough for me!"

Tsuna was confused. "Good enough?"

Lambo finally returned his gaze and smiled. "Good enough reason for me to believe you understand that I really do like you a lot."

Of course Tsuna understood it, but maybe his brain refused to admit it.

"Sometimes, I think you're too mature for your age, Lambo . . ." And there were also times that it was the exact opposite. It was as if Lambo fluctuated between a five-year-old and a twenty-five-year-old.

"I've always been me, though," Lambo pouted.

"I know."

* * *

Later that night, Tsuna decided to test himself and apply Uncle Kawahira's advice to him. After he placed down his backpack on his table, he gathered all his confidence (regardless of how minimal it was) and faced his window.

"I — " Tsuna bit his lip before he continued, "I would really, _really_ appreciate it if you don't tap on my window every night, Kyouya."

There was no response. Tsuna wasn't even sure if it was actually Kyouya who was doing it but that guy was the most probable person he could think of. Thinking rationally about it now, there was also a chance it was a different person every night. He never had the opportunity to look and verify. Not like he wanted to know in the first place; who knew what would happen if he opened his window at night?! Tsuna refused to even theorize about it.

Then there were two taps.

Tsuna gulped.

Then another two taps.

Tsuna fisted his hands together.

Then three taps.

That was when it dawned to Tsuna — the taps had a pattern?

Then another three taps.

 _What?_ Tsuna waited for the next set of taps, but when several more seconds passed and nothing followed, he made sure that he had his phone on one hand, one tap away from calling his mom before he exhaled and pulled open his window.

 _No one._

Tsuna closed his window and called for his mom anyway.

* * *

Tsuna slept on the living room couch that night.

* * *

Out of a whim, Tsuna asked Reborn the next day if he knew what the taps meant when done in the specific pattern he heard. He wasn't expecting any serious answer, though Tsuna thought it would be interesting what the guy's answer would be, regardless of accuracy.

"Aah, tap code," Reborn muttered as he sipped on his espresso.

 _Tap code?_

"Two taps then two taps is 'G', three taps then three taps is 'N'," Reborn elaborated.

 _Huh._ "So it exists," Tsuna replied in awe. "'GN'? What does it mean?"

Reborn's eyes locked on Tsuna's. "Good night."

For some reason, that sent some very annoying chills down Tsuna's spine.

"By the way," Reborn continued, taking another sip of his coffee, "It's not really a secret, but tap codes are commonly used in situations when there's no other way to communicate. More of a last resort. Common in prisons."

* * *

Nana was very happy that Tsuna began to sleep beside her again, even though she knew it was only temporary.


End file.
